


Soul Mates Through Time

by EchoTuran



Category: Assassin's Creed
Genre: F/M, M/M, Multi, Soul Mate AU of sorts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-13
Updated: 2018-06-03
Packaged: 2018-07-14 18:54:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 44,935
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7185977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EchoTuran/pseuds/EchoTuran
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Desmond has wondered all his life who the three men who's names he bore on his skin were. When he finally discovered who two of them were he never thought there would ever be a chance to meet them with how long it had been since they'd even been alive. When he suddenly finds himself with all three of his given soul mates, it's a race to find the Apples of Eden before the Templars and a race to save the world. (I'm really not good at these so thats the best your gonna get)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

 

   Desmond had always believed the gods were against him from the moment he'd been born. From being born into a family who were part of an occultist group, who he discovered later weren't as crazy as they sounded, to the three names that were printed boldly on his skin right over his heart. He'd always wondered who were the owners of the names printed there. Always silently wondering who Altair could be, where Ezio might be at and what decent Ratonhnhake:ton hailed from to have such a unique name. But he was cursed to be trapped on the farm forever, that is until he didn't want that anymore so at sixteen he left it all behind hoping and praying maybe he'd find just one of the ones who's name marked his skin.

    However, he never found them in all the nine years he'd been away from the farm. Not until Abstergo had captured him. It was then he realized the gods truly did hate him, they had cursed him to be born hundreds of years after the very first name over his heart. Altair. He'd been an assassin of Masyaf in the twelfth century and the one to rebuild the brotherhood after Al Mualim's betrayal. Desmond couldn't believe his luck, to be cursed to see one of his soul mates all the while knowing there was never a chance of him meeting him. What killed him even more was unlike Desmond, Altair only had one name on his skin. The inside of his left arm held the dark scrawl of Desmond's name on Altair and going through his memories knowing that Altair would never know him destroyed the young man.

    It wasn't long after he'd finished going through Altair's memories that Lucy had freed Desmond from Abstergo and taken him to fellow Assassin's by the names of Shaun Hastings and Rebecca Crane. From there he decided to continue helping by going into the memories of his next ancestor. Needless to say Desmond instantly desynchronized with him the moment he heard his name and refused to go back into the memories for the rest of the day, much to Shaun's frustration. It had taken all his will power not to break down the moment he was alone. He couldn't understand why the gods had cursed him not once but twice. How could both Altair and Ezio be destined for him, when he was cursed into a time where they were long dead and gone.

    By the next day Desmond had pulled himself together, but it had pained him none the less to go through all the pain Ezio had to live through. He was once again gifted with the view of his name on a part of Ezio's skin, on the Italian man's right wrist, and like Altair it was the only name on the man's skin. By this point Desmond was afraid to even go into another ancestor's memory in fear that he would only discover that they carried the final name on his chest, Ratonhnhake:ton. He didn't know if he could take the heart shattering pain of discovering the final name might also belong to a man who was long dead. Instead he focused on the hunt for the very Piece of Eden Ezio had hidden away in his memories.

    He and his group had found it easy enough, right where Ezio had sealed it away. Sighing as he looked around, Desmond was the first to actually approach the object. It was just a gold orb with strange markings on it, but he could feel the strange power that seemed to be coming off of it and it made him shiver. Pulling himself together, Desmond stepped forward and reached out for the Apple of Eden. The moment his hand touched it, the entire room exploded with a brilliant golden white light that forced Desmond and his group cry out and cover their eyes. Desmond vaguely heard the sound of Lucy calling his name in fear for him, but he was too busy shielding his eyes to respond.

    As the light faded, Desmond slowly removed his arms from his eyes and blinked in confusion. He wasn't sure what had happened, but he hadn't gone anywhere. He was still in the vault and he could hear the others behind him shuffling around and whining in confusion as they tried to recover as well. Scanning the area in confusion, Desmond was taken by surprise as someone tackled into him full force and knocked him to the ground. Before he had the chance to react he felt a sharp blade against his throat. His eyes immediately snapped into focus to look up at his enemy only to widen in surprise and confusion at who kneeled over him.

    The person didn't look much older then when Desmond had last seen him in the animus, with his white assassin's robes and his hood pulled close over his head. The same scar over his lip and honey colored eyes glaring down at the younger man with his ever constant scowl on his face.

  
_"Who are you and what am I doing here?!"_ The man above Desmond demanded in Arabic. Desmond couldn't answer though, his voice had been stolen from him by the realization that Altair Ibn La 'Ahad was standing over him. He couldn't tell if maybe he'd passed out or not, but the brief glance in the others direction quickly shattered that thought. Before his friends stood two other men, one wore a familiar assassin outfit that Desmond recalled from the Animus and the swiftly spoken Italian confirmed his suspicions as he recognized Ezio Auditore's voice. The second figure was unfamiliar to Desmond however, but if the hooded outfit was any indication, the man had to be an assassin as well.

  
_"Answer me!"_ The sudden demand from Altair, snapped Desmond's gaze back to the Syrian.

  
_"My name's Desmond and I have no idea what you are doing or how you got here!"_ Desmond spat out in frantic Arabic as he felt Altair's hidden blade press closer to his neck.

    The man above him froze at the name and Desmond took the chance to make sure his friends were unharmed. He wasn't surprised to see Ezio had frozen at his name as well, but the other man had done the same.

  
_"You lie!"_ Ezio shouted in Arabic confusing both himself and Desmond. Ezio didn't know Arabic let alone how to speak it and yet he just had.

  
_"I'm not lying, I swear!"_ Desmond shouted in Italian hoping that maybe if he spoke Ezio's native language he'd trust his words just a bit.

"Desmond are you okay!" Lucy called pulling all the men's attention to her.

"Just don't move Lucy, I'm fine!" Desmond called back, trying to hold back the urge he had to throw Altair off and rush to his friend's aid. He forced himself to lay beneath Altair without struggling, knowing that he had no chance against the Grandmaster of Masyaf.

"Show me your names?"

    The sound of the third man speaking in English had Desmond's head snap sideways to look at him in surprise. Desmond tried to see if he could get a look at the third man's face, hoping maybe he could recognize him from any of the memories he'd gone through in the Animus, but the man was hidden by his hood.

  
_"Yes, show us the name you carry?"_ Ezio demanded crossing his arms over his chest. Desmond glanced to him then to Altair, wondering if the Syrian would even allow him to get up to do as he was being asked. He was legitimately surprised when said Syrian retracted his hidden blade and stood up. Desmond slowly sat up, not wanting to make any sudden movements in case Altair changed his mind about letting him up. Once he was up he glanced at his friends in fear, he'd never shown the names to anyone not even his parents and he especially didn't want his friends seeing it now.

  
_"Show us?"_ Altair asked coldly, pulling Desmond's attention to him.

    Sighing in defeat, Desmond reached up behind his head and started tugging his hoodie off. This was the first time he'd ever wished he actually wore something underneath the article of clothing instead of going shirtless like he had today. Pushing past his worry he pulled the hoodie all the way off and pooled the article in his lap before straightening and moving his arms so they all could see the three names that were scrawled over his heart. The three men froze at the sight while his friends gasped in surprise at the names on his chest.

"Desmond why didn't you ever say anything?" Rebecca asked in shock as the man in question closed his eyes.

"I didn't think it was relevant, besides let's be honest the fact I had Ezio's name wouldn't have stopped any of you from having me go through his memories to find the Apple." Desmond replied tiredly.

    As intrusive as he felt when he'd gone through Altair and Ezio's memories, it had been the only way he'd been able to learn about two of the men who were supposed to be destined for him. At least that is until they quite literally appeared right before him. Desmond slowly opened his eyes nearly jumping out of his skin as he found the three men kneeling around him. Altair had knelt between his legs, with Ezio to his right and the other man to his left. It took all of Desmond's will power not to move back out of reflex as Altair reached one of his hands out to run his fingers over the names on his chest. The younger man couldn't stop the shiver that ran down his spine at the feeling of the Syrian's fingers on his bare skin.

"You know this is swell and all, but how the hell are they here?!" Shaun blurted out, pulling Desmond's attention to him instantly.

    He felt Altair freeze in his movements, while Ezio and the other man discreetly turned their heads to glare at the Brit from under their hoods.

"That is a good question. We were here to retrieve the Apple and for some reason they appeared after it activated." Lucy said thoughtfully, her hand against her chin.

"Perhaps we shouldn't think about it here? We should head back to the safe house and store the apple away." Rebecca suggested glancing over at the four men still on the floor of the vault. That snapped Desmond out of his silence as he swiftly shot to his feet, making Altair flinch slightly. Ignoring the Syrian's reaction for the moment, Desmond pulled his hoodie back on and swiftly stepped past the men knelt around him to snatch the Apple up from the floor. He'd dropped it when Altair had tackled him, which, now that he thought about it, was probably the whole reason he'd been tackled in the first place.

"Becca's right, we should head back to Monteriggioni before we try figuring out what's happening." Desmond agreed, shoving the Apple into his hoodie pocket.

    At the mention of Monteriggioni, Ezio shot to his feet and looked to Desmond curiously. The other two stood more slowly, clearly unsure of whether they should trust the other three with Desmond.

  
_"Are these people allies of yours, tesoro?"_ Ezio asked as he stepped closer to Desmond.

  
_"What? Oh, yeah, that's Lucy, Rebecca and Shaun."_ Desmond replied absently as he stepped away from the Italian to move closer to the still thoughtful Lucy.

"Luce, now's not the time to think about this." Desmond urged, snapping her from her thoughts.

"Right, let's go." Lucy said absently and led the way towards the exit.

    Desmond was about to follow after her, when he felt a hand grab his arm, causing him to jerk slightly at the sudden stop of his motions. He turned to find the unnamed man had grabbed his arm and was watching him from under his white hood.

"Where are you taking us?" The man demanded gently, with Altair nodding behind him.

"A safe house. Ezio will know it well, though it's nothing compared to what it was in his memories, we've been using it to hide from Abstergo." Desmond replied.

  
_"Abstergo?"_ Altair asked curiously, making Desmond look at him in surprise. He didn't know Altair could understand English, shaking the thought to focus he sighed.

"Look I'd love to stand around and explain this all right now, but we have to move if we don't want them to figure out we were here. Once we start heading to the Villa I'll try to explain everything I can and answer any questions you all have." Desmond answered, slipping free to follow the others to the exit. It was then he realized he still needed to ask the final mans name and quickly stopped to turn to him.

"I'm afraid I've only ever been through Ezio and Altair's memories, so you are unfamiliar to me. What is your name?" Desmond asked.

    He received a slight frown from the man, before it turned into a slight smirk.

"My name is Ratonhnhake:ton, but I find others can more easily pronounce my Colonial name, Connor Kenway." The man replied. Desmond tensed at the mention of the first name and stared at the man, before he laughed hysterically. The other three men stared at him questioningly as Desmond doubled over laughing while covering his eyes with one of his hands.

"It fucking figures!" Desmond laughed out harshly, receiving concerned gazes from the men.

"Two of the names was bad enough, but all three?! Damn the gods must absolutely despise me!" Desmond spat angrily as he straightened, his face having twisted into one of anger. Altair was the first to step forward and place a hand on the younger man's shoulders.

  
_"Are you alright, habibi?"_ He asked gently.

    Desmond simply shook his head and turned towards the exit to keep heading forward.

"It wouldn't matter if I was or not..." Desmond muttered, unaware that all three men had heard him. Altair frowned to the others before they all followed after the man.

 

 

    The ride back to the Auditore Villa was long and tiring for Desmond as he jumped between talking in Arabic, English and Italian while he spoke to the three Assassins. The hardest part had been getting them into the van that he and his friends had used to get to the Vault that held the Apple, but once he convinced them it was like a carriage without horses they climbed in without complaint clearly trusting the man who carried their names. He explained everything to them. From his life on the farm, to leaving, to Abstergo and living through two of the three men's memories; occasionally dealing with the insulting comments from Shaun without an argument. It was nearly dawn when Desmond felt himself finally and unwillingly nod off in the back of the Van. He was exhausted from all the time he'd spent in the Animus the weeks before, the nightmares that had plagued him from the bleeding effect and the events of that evening.

    However, it seemed sleep was not to be his that morning because, Shaun suddenly slammed on the brakes and Desmond instantly lurched forward and his head hit the side of the van. Groaning, the man barely registered the three men around him shouting at the driver in an angry mix of English, Arabic and Italian while the Brit muttered back something about Desmond not pulling his weight. Desmond growled, but didn't try and argue it. He was used to being insulted and pushed around, and far too tired to put up any kind of fight he might have usually given. He got out of the van and was closely followed by the three Assassins.

  
_"What is the matter with that bastardo?!"_ Ezio asked angrily as he glared back at where Shaun was getting out of the Van with the girls.

  
_"And who does he think he is insulting Desmond like that?"_ Connor inquired angrily, barely registering his sudden Italian speech.

  
_"If he says one more thing about habibi being a pathetic excuse for an assassin, he's going to be joining his maker."_ Altair muttered angrily.

  
_"Shaun's always like that, and he's not wrong compared to the effort the others put in all I do is sit around in a chair running around through someone's memories."_ Desmond replied stopping the yawn that had threatened to break his sentence.

    By now the young American had gotten used to the fact the three men seemed capable of not only understand the three different languages they spoke but also speak them all perfectly.

  
_"Habibi, if what you told us is true, then you are putting far more at risk by simply going into this-Animus was it- and dealing with the side effects of its use."_ Altair stated firmly, easily switching from Italian to Arabic.

  
_"That still doesn't change the fact I'm a pathetic excuse for an Assassin, even with the bleeding effect I'm no where near being a well trained assassin. Any fighting we've done I've gotten out with only scratches merely on luck nothing more."_ Desmond replied in Italian, his mind was too tired to try and switch the language at the moment.

  
_"I have to agree with Altair on this one, you are putting more at risk by having these side effects then that bastardo does looking over the invention."_ Ezio shot back, sticking to Italian like Desmond.

    Desmond sighed tiredly, not wanting to push the argument. After all, once they were back inside he'd probably be going back in the Animus again. He needed as much energy as he could muster for it.

"Desmond?" The sound of Connor calling his name gently, had the young American turning to the Native slightly, "Are you alright? Perhaps you should rest?" As if hearing the suggestion all the way from where he was talking with Rebecca and Lucy, Shaun came stalking over with a scowl on his face.

"The slacker has to get in the Animus, we may have the Piece of Eden, but we need to finish going through Ezio's memories to see if there's any clues to the others or what these could possibly lead to." Shaun said flatly, receiving nothing but an exhausted sigh from Desmond. By now the young man was so used to being used by his own friends that he really didn't care that they seemed to pay little to no care to the fact he was slowly falling apart.

    However, the three new men seemed to not agree with Shaun's views and before Desmond could answer the Brit, he found himself staring at their backs as they seemed to make a physical wall between him and the red head.

"He's exhausted. He needs to rest before you start throwing him into that thing." Connor stated firmly, receiving confirming nods from the other two.

"We don't have time for him to laze about, if the rest of us can pull all nighters for days in a row so can he. All he does is sit in the chair anyway it's not like he does anything else. He'll be fine, now Desmond go stash the Apple and meet us in the Animus room." Shaun shot back, starting to walk past them towards the Villa. Before he could however, Ezio's hand shot out and grabbed Shaun by the front of his shirt.

"If you want to live to see tomorrow I suggest you let our _tesoro_ rest." Ezio spat out angrily, his Italian accent easily accentuating the English words he spoke.

    Desmond's eyes widen in surprise and he was about to step forward to help the Brit, when the feeling of a hand on his shoulder stopped him. Glancing back, his curious gaze met Altair's shadowed gaze. The Syrian shook his head at the younger, and slightly shorter, man before looking back at Shaun and Ezio. Turning back too, Desmond was surprised to see Shaun nod with fearful wide eyes, while Rebecca and Lucy stood back slightly in fear for the Brit.

"Good." Ezio said flatly, dropping Shaun with a slight shove, making the Brit nearly knock over Lucy. Desmond was about to tell Ezio that the girls hadn't done anything when he was turned around by Altair and quickly herded towards the Villa by all three Assassins. Ezio led the way inside with Desmond trapped between Connor and Altair, who had a grip on each of his arms.

  
_"Which room are you staying in tesoro?"_ Ezio asked as he turned back to the younger man in the entrance way.

  
_"We're kind of staying wherever we drop, but I prefer to stay down in the sanctuary."_ Desmond replied, his cheeks growing hot.

    He stayed down in the sanctuary for only one reason and that reason was the statue of Altair that was down there. It was the only place Desmond could pretend he felt the Syrian's presence, along with the occasional times when he'd wake up and the bleeding effect would grace him with a ghostly image of Ezio walking around the sanctuary.

  
_"Very well, to the Sanctuary then."_ Ezio replied, turning and leading the other three through the Villa and to the entrance to the sanctuary. Desmond let him self be steered by Connor as Altair was forced to release his arm due to the lack of space down the passage way. The moment they reached the underground sanctuary though, Connor stopped and released Desmond's arm. Glancing at the Native, the American wasn't surprised to find Connor glancing around in awe at the room before he eagerly walked up to inspect one of the seven statues. Curious as well Altair stepped past Desmond and walked up to the statue in the middle, his statue. Desmond watched them for a moment before Ezio stepped up to him.

  
_"Where do you rest tesoro?"_ Ezio asked, curiously looking around for a place for someone to sleep at.

  
_"On that."_ Desmond replied, pointing to the cot he had set up not far from Altair's statue, _"It's not the most comfortable thing to sleep on, but better than the floor."_

    Ezio followed his pointing finger and nodded, before taking Desmond's arm. The American bit back a squeak of surprise as he was suddenly pulled towards the cot.

  
_"Then you should get some rest. You look dead on your feet."_ Ezio suggested stopping by the cot and gently pushing Desmond to sit on it. He didn't fight the firm hold as he sat down on the cot with a tired sigh. Running a hand over his face, Desmond fought back a yawn before glancing at the Syrian and Native who were still looking around at the statues curiously. It appeared Altair was no longer interested in his statue and had moved on to the one at the far end while Connor had taken Altair's place to examine the center statue.

  
_"Desmond can I inquire as to why you would wish to stay down here?"_ Connor asked, speaking in Italian.

"The other's don't come down here unless they want me for the Animus, you don't have to keep speaking a foreign language Connor." Desmond replied finally switching back to English himself as he fought another yawn, "As for why I stay down here, I can sleep easier down here. It's hard to explain why."

    The Native nodded in understanding and moved over to where Desmond sat with Ezio standing in front of him. Seeming to notice the others gathering around the American, Altair joined them and leaned against the wall just behind Desmond's cot.

"You guys don't have to stay down here, I'm just going to get a few hours of sleep before Shaun comes bitching and then I'll be in the Animus for the rest of the day." Desmond said as he tiredly collapsed on his side on the cot.

"We'll stay until you are asleep _tesoro_ , then I shall give these two a tour while you rest." Ezio replied firmly. Desmond shrugged at them his exhaustion finally consuming him as he let his eyes fall shut. He heard the barely audible sound of the three around him shifting and barely registered the feeling of a hand in his hair before his unconsciousness consumed him.

 

 

 

    Desmond groaned as he slowly came awake. It was the first time in months he hadn't been plagued with horrible nightmares and had actually slept deeply. In fact it had been so long since he'd slept that well that he was a bit disoriented by it. Pulling out his phone from his pocket as he sat up, he looked at the clock and was surprised to find he'd slept through the entire day yesterday and all of last night. It was now maybe seven in the morning the next day and it confused him that Shaun or one of the girls hadn't come to drag his ass from his rest. Scowling in confusion, he stood from his cot and headed up to the Villa trying to comprehend how he'd been left alone enough to actually have slept that long.

    Forcing back a yawn, Desmond headed through the villa and into the kitchen area. They had brought in a table as well as a traveling stove, a small cooler and a box of a few instant food items so that they weren't always spending money on take out. He was hungry but he needed coffee first to help pull him from his disoriented state. Moving to the table, he grabbed one of the mugs there and started a fresh pot of coffee. While he waited for the coffee to finish he leaned back against the table and let his eyes scan the room. Eventually his eyes fell on a ghostly figure of Altair as it literally materialized through the wall. By this point he was so used to these images and how real they appeared to him that he legitimately jumped and shouted in surprise when the actual man walked through the door way and straight through the ghostly image.

    Altair stopped in his tracks at Desmond's shout and looked at the younger man in concern. Desmond sighed and tried to calm his racing heart as his mind finally caught up with everything that had happened. He'd been so surprised by having slept so long and disoriented by it he'd completely forgotten Altair and the other two were even here.

  
_"Are you alright, Desmond?"_ Altair asked in Arabic, his voice sounding concerned for the younger man.

"Yeah, I'm fine. You...ugh you just surprised me is all. Not used to seeing more then one of you at a time." Desmond replied turning to the coffee pot and pouring some into a mug.

  
_"More than one of me?"_ Altair sounded confused by Desmond's statement and the American couldn't blame him. Those who didn't know how the Bleeding Effect works wouldn't understand that he was talking about the ghostly images of Altair and Ezio that seemed to be a constant presence around him.

"Yeah. The ugh...the bleeding effect kinda makes me see images of you and Ezio waltzing around so, watching you walk straight through a ghostly version of you kinda freaked me out for a second." Desmond replied reluctantly, quickly taking a long drink from his coffee, "Not to mention I was so thrown off about sleeping all the way into the next day that I kinda forgot you and the others were here. I'm guessing Lucy and the others haven't found a way to send you home then?"

    Altair tilted his head at Desmond's question and scowled. It was clear the Syrian wasn't pleased by the question, though Desmond couldn't fathom why, instead of pushing it he took another drink of his coffee. As he did so, Connor strode into the kitchen and stopped when he noticed Desmond.

"Ah, good to see you are awake Desmond. You look well rested." The native said with a smile. Unlike Altair, Connor had pushed his hood down and Desmond was able to take in his Mohawk like hair cut that suited his Native features and even accented his handsome face. Yet as Desmond looked at the young assassin he could tell that their was a naiveté to his face that he almost envied.

"I am. Which is what I'm wondering about. There's no way Shaun or the girls would've let me sleep that long. Did something happen?" Desmond inquired curiously looking to the Native. He wasn't worried that anything bad had happened, he doubted anyone would've let him keep sleeping if there had been any kind of danger to any of them.

    Connor glanced at Altair for a moment, making Desmond do the same, but the Syrian seemed to quickly occupy himself with looking around to avoid their gazes. Desmond looked back to Connor as he sighed.

"We have been keeping them all at bay. Ezio has threatened more then once to dismember that red haired gentleman and the girls haven't even tried to press the subject." Connor explained sheepishly, quickly pulling his hood up to hide his face somewhat. Desmond blinked at him for a moment, not sure what to say to his explanation. Deciding he needed a moment, he finished the cup of coffee and then poured another before silently offering to the other two by holding the pot up. Both men shook their heads and Desmond put the pot back before taking a drink of his now full cup.

"Alright then, so why would you three be keeping them at bay? I told you I only needed to sleep a few hours." Desmond asked. He wasn't angry, just genuinely curious about their actions.

"You were exhausted _habibi_ , we thought you could use more then a few hours of rest. We simply ensured that you got as much as you needed." Altair replied, easily slipping to English to speak with the two men properly.

    Desmond stared at Altair with slightly wide eyes and blinked a few times in shock. Never once in all his life had anyone been genuinely concerned for him like Altair sounded in that moment. It honestly surprised him that men he had met just yesterday for the first time were so concerned for his well being in such a short amount of time.

"You don't have to worry about me, I'm honestly used to it. Besides with the possibility of the end of the world coming up, I don't have time to be sleeping an entire day away." Desmond stated calmly. However, instead of easing the two men both of them simply scowled at him and crossed their arms over their chests.

"Sorry Desmond, but we are already extremely worried for you. Your fellow Assassin's behavior and treatment towards you alone is enough to worry us." Connor stated flatly.

"Add on the fact you are clearly having your mind slowly ripped apart every time you get in that device and we have even more reason to be concerned." Altair added.

"They are right _tesoro._ You may say we need not worry, but that is indeed the main reason we should worry." The sound of Ezio's voice had Desmond turning slightly to see the Italian leaning against the doorway he'd come through earlier.

    Ezio was watching him carefully with a scowl to match the others etched on his face. The expressions simply made Desmond sigh and shake his head at them.

"I'm fine really. I understand the others reasons to push me as much as they do. We're on a time limit and if we don't get the information we need before that time limit is up it could mean the end of everything we know. And the Animus is the only way we can get those answers." Desmond stated solemnly. He hated the fact that the fate of the world was quite literally on his shoulders and that because of it he was forced to slowly lose his mind every time he laid down in the Animus. However, he refused to just stand by and let the world end, if he could do something to stop it then he damn sure was going to. The sudden feeling of an arm coming around his waist made, Desmond jump and he barely managed to catch himself before he spilt his coffee. Snapping back to reality, he stared wide-eyed at Altair who had moved in front of him, his hood pushed back.

    The American was confused for a moment as Altair silently set his forehead against his, but the moment he did Desmond felt all the tenseness in his body melt away. He couldn't explain why, it just did like having Altair that close to him was all it took to calm his nerves.

  
_"There are other ways to save the world habibi other then slowly destroying your own mind."_ Altair muttered softly, his honey colored eyes locked on Desmond's own brown gaze.

"If we had other ways we wouldn't be putting me in the Animus every day." Desmond replied with a sigh.

"Do you really believe that your supposed companions would truly take the more difficult route when they can simply get all the answers they need to find by using you?" Connor asked sternly, appearing on Desmond's left side so he could set his hand on the younger man's shoulder.

"Why wouldn't they? They know what the Bleeding Effect does to me, if they thought there was another way then they'd take it." Desmond said defensively, pulling back from Altair slightly to glance at the Mohawkian, however the Syrian never released his waist.

"You said it yourself, _tesoro_ , you are used to the treatment they give you. As well as having dealt with this from the Templars before joining your fellow assassins to find the Piece of Eden. Why would they try to hunt for another way when you were already so compliant to go in the Animus and find the answer much faster for them." Ezio agreed with Connor as he moved to Desmond's other side and set his hand on Desmond's head.

    For a moment, Desmond was going to snap at all of them and tell them that the others had been his support as well as his friends since his escape from Abstergo, but he held his tongue. As their words slowly sunk in, Desmond found his stomach sinking at the thought of them only using the Animus because it was the easy way to find their answers. But he couldn't understand why they would do that. His mind was literally slowly spiraling into an insanity that he couldn't ever return from if he lost himself in it. So why would they risk that happening to him if there was another way?

    Desmond felt his body start to tremble at the possibility that Shaun and the girls were putting him through hell simply to get what they needed out of him. They were supposed to be his friends, his allies, they weren't supposed to be just as bad as the bastards who had dragged him into this shit in the first place. As his thoughts continued to swirl, he felt his shoulders sag and the men around him shifted a bit closer to him. Desmond felt Ezio lay his head against his own, Connor slipped his arm around his shoulders and squeezed him slightly while Altair wrapped his free arm around Desmond's waist as well before pulling him a little closer.

  
_"Do not worry Desmond, we won't let anything happen to you."_ Connor muttered quietly in Arabic.

    The American nodded slightly at the Mohawkian's words, finding comfort in the touch of the three men around him. He couldn't help but wonder if this was how he was supposed to feel with his Soul mates. Was this how everyone felt when they found the one who's name they bore? He wasn't sure if it was, but in that moment he didn't care, he enjoyed their comfort and basked in the fact that someone was actually concerned about him.

"Desmond is that you, I hear in here?!" The sound of Lucy calling pulled Desmond from his moment of comfort and had the other three men pulling back slightly. Altair and Connor didn't release their holds, but Ezio did pull his head up so he could turn to watch the blonde woman walk into the kitchen. Lucy stopped mid-step as she noticed the scene before her.

"Oh, ugh, I'm sorry didn't mean to interrupt..." Lucy said apologetically, glancing at Desmond for help. However, Desmond had no help to offer, he understood the three men's hostility now and he wasn't planning on squashing it either.

    Seeming to notice she'd receive no help from the youngest male, Lucy fidgeted slightly while glancing between them.

"Well ugh, you look well rested now. Do you think you will be ready for the Animus once you are done in here?" Lucy asked, trying not to appear afraid of the three clearly very skilled assassins.

"No." Desmond replied flatly, as Connor and Altair's arms tightened around him.

"No?" Lucy asked in surprise, "Desmond we don't have time for you to rest anymore we have to find more Pieces of Eden before the Templars do and find more about the event Minerva informed Ezio about."

"And I said no." Desmond shot back, glaring at the woman slightly, "We'll find them another way."

"If we could find them another way we would've done so by now." Lucy shot back in frustration.

"Would you have. You never told me about you ever trying to find other ways, you only told me that the Assassins need me to find the Pieces of Eden. You said that I needed to keep going into the Animus so that we could find them before the Templars, never once did you tell me there was no other options just that that was MY only option to help find them." Desmond spat back, pulling free from the three men to stalk over to the blonde.

    Lucy stumbled back slightly at his sudden and hostile approach, but clearly wasn't as afraid of him as she was the other three males. She suddenly straightened and glared at him.

"I didn't mention it because there is no other option, we need you to go through the memories to find the Pieces of Eden and stop the end of the world we have no other choice." Lucy said firmly.

"And I'm saying you better find one, because I refuse to get into that machine until I have been shown that there is absolutely no other option." Desmond replied, his voice resembling a growl. Lucy stared at him shocked, before glancing past him to the other three men and back again.

"Is this because of them?" Lucy asked quietly, though Desmond knew all three men could most likely hear her, "Did they make you think we knew of another way?"

"Even if they did, it doesn't matter _I_ want you to find another way. Until then I'm not getting anywhere near the Animus not unless you plan to drug me up just like Abstergo." Desmond spat back not bothering to lower his voice.

    Lucy stared at him as if she believed him to be crazy before shaking her head and stepping back from him.

"I'm contacting William. We don't have time for you to be acting like a child." Lucy said angrily, pulling out a cell phone. Desmond tensed at the mention of his father and had to force himself not to smack the cell from the blonde's hand. Seeming to notice his sudden tension, the other three men immediately stocked over, making Lucy back up as she dialed a number. Desmond held out his arm stopping Ezio from advancing on the blonde while Altair and Connor stopped behind him.

"Go ahead and call him Lucy but unless you plan to drug me, I'm not changing my mind." Desmond stated calmly, as she pressed the phone to her ear. It was clear the woman thought calling his father was going to scare him into doing exactly what she wanted, but he wasn't. He had a horrible relationship with his father and he sure as hell wasn't going to let the bastard push him around anymore. He wasn't sixteen anymore, and he wasn't exactly alone in his stance.

    Lucy huffed and spoke into the phone as she turned away, but Desmond vaguely heard her say his father's name before she continued down the hall. Desmond glared after her, but quickly relaxed as he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you alright Desmond?" Connor asked, gently. The American took a deep breath and let it out slowly before nodding. He was alright, a bit tense and not looking forward to dealing with his father, but alright none the less.

"I refuse to be pushed around anymore." Desmond said firmly, turning to the three men.

"Who is this William, she spoke of?" Altair asked calmly, crossing his arms over his chest. Desmond sighed slightly at the question and crossed his own arms.

"Remember, I told you that I grew up on a Farm for Assassins and how I didn't get along with my father?" Desmond inquired, glancing between them. They all nodded and Desmond sighed again.

"William is my father and also the Mentor of the Assassins. He's the one really wanting us to find the Pieces of Eden." Desmond explained, anger clear in his voice as he spoke of the man.

"Your father is the Mentor?!" Ezio asked in surprise. Desmond nodded, he had never understood what that had meant as a kid, however, after reliving Altair's memories he had a bit of a better understanding of it though not much.

"Why didn't you tell us this?" Connor asked curiously.

"Didn't find it important. The old man was always an Assassin first and just because he's Mentor doesn't mean I answer to him. I left when I was sixteen so I wouldn't have to take his orders, I sure as hell ain't gonna start listening to him now." Desmond replied, shifting slightly as he tried to keep from directing his anger at them.

    Desmond couldn't stand his father, even now after realizing the man was right about everything he'd ever taught Desmond as a kid. He just had too much dislike and anger towards William to try to have even a little compassion for the guy and what he had to do when it came to running the Brotherhood. However, he also knew that the three men before him didn't deserve that anger, especially since they technically didn't belong in this time and knew nothing about the man. That thought seemed to pierce Desmond's heart like a knife. The three men before him were Assassins from other times and even though they were his soul mates, they still didn't belong here with him. Especially not Altair, he was the one who paved the way for the Brotherhood after Al Mualim. The Syrian was part of the cause for Ezio to bring the Brotherhood back and to build it again. And though he knew little of Connor or how he played a part in history, Desmond had no doubt he was important enough that he would need to be sent home very soon.

    Desmond sighed as he realized his luck. He had finally gotten to meet all three of the men whose name he carried and he wasn't allowed to keep them in his life. He would have to make sure they made it home just so that he would exist and so that the Brotherhood could exist, and that thought completely pissed him off. He seemed to be making all the Sacrifices to save this damn world and was getting nothing in return. Guess that's what happens when you make the stupid decision to try and save the world. People didn't give you "thank yous" or rewards, you just get screwed over until you were left in the dirt licking your wounds after the battle.

    Sighing to himself, Desmond straightened and moved back to the table. He'd set his coffee down when he'd stalked towards Lucy and he desperately needed something to calm his nerves.

  
_"Habibi?"_ Altair called gently, making Desmond flinch. The American knew what that word meant and he knew his heart shouldn't beat faster every time he heard it.

"Stop calling me that." Desmond said, flatly as he gripped the handle of his mug tightly.

  
_"Why? You carry my name, I do not understand why I shouldn't call you that."_ Altair inquired, sounding confused by Desmond's words.

  
_"_ _He is right tesoro, you carry our names. Using terms of endearment is only natural."_ Ezio agreed, sounding a bit amused.

"Because you all have to go back." Desmond stated, his voice sounding defeated, "You can't stay here. Altair, you have to go back and rebuild the Brotherhood so that when Ezio starts to do the same in his own time he has guidance from your Codex also why you have to go back Ezio. As for Connor, I don't know if I'll ever go through his memories, but I'm sure he plays a major part in helping the Brotherhood. None of you can stay here and hearing those words is just going to make it harder when you all have to leave!"

    Silence filled the kitchen after Desmond's slight rant that ended with him slamming the mug on the table and nearly shattering it. He wasn't angry at them, he was angry at whatever god or gods that had decided to curse him and them like this. He couldn't understand what any of them had done to deserve this. Letting out a shaky breath, Desmond ran a hand through his hair as his shoulders slumped in defeat. He didn't want them to leave, but he knew the longer they stayed the harder it was and their endearing terms didn't help any. The sudden feeling of a pair of arms slipping around his waist made the American jump before glancing over his shoulder. Connor had been the one to brave getting close to the younger man and closely pressed himself against Desmond's back while resting his head on his shoulder.

"I've lost so much through life..." Connor muttered softly, making Desmond's heart clench in pain at his words, "I can't lose you too, Desmond."

    Now that made Desmond feel even worse for blowing up. He knew what Ezio and Altair had lost and knew that they would clearly find someone who made them happy simply because of his existence. However, with Connor, he had no idea what the Mohawkian had faced or even if he was an Ancestor to Desmond so there was no way to know if he found someone that would one day make every thing a bit better. That thought made him bow his head while trying to fight the tears that threatened him. He refused to cry. His efforts quickly crumbled however when he felt Ezio and Altair on either side before they both wrapped their arms around him like Connor had. He quickly covered his eyes with one hand as tears threatened to spill over and swallowed a sob that threatened to escape him. He wouldn't cry, not because he didn't want to but because he was stronger then that. He sure as hell didn't want these three thinking him weak in the slightest. Though he doubted they would.

    The sudden sound of Shaun cursing a few rooms away and the sound of stomping footsteps heading towards the kitchen pulled the four men's attention to the door way. Desmond wasn't surprised when Shaun stalked in with a pissed off expression.

"How childish can you get?!" Shaun demanded glaring at Desmond, but having enough self-preservation not to approach the American while he was surrounded by the three Assassins.

"How am I childish?" Desmond asked, his tone bored as Altair and Ezio released him to face the Brit. Connor kept his arms tightly wrapped around the American's waist, but allowed him to turn to look at Shaun.

"We don't have time to find another way to find the Temple or the other Pieces of Eden. Now stop being an over grown brat and get your ass in the Animus!" Shaun shouted angrily and pointed towards the Animus room.

"No." Desmond responded calmly, for once refusing to give in to the Brit's harsh treatment of him.

"Why the hell not?! It's not like you do anything else anyway!" Shaun demanded angrily.

"Oh? Then why don't you go into the Animus and slowly let it drive you crazy with waking up not knowing who you are and having to deal with ghostly images of people who appear real, but are only images from your mind?" Desmond asked. He felt surprisingly calm considering the Brit's usual treatment of him either pissed him off or tired him out.

    Shaun's mouth suddenly snapped shut at his statement as if he was having difficulty coming up with a comeback for what Desmond had just said. Which wasn't surprising since the Brit clearly hadn't taken into consideration what Desmond truly went through to give them what they wanted.

"Because we don't need my Ancestors, we need yours!" Shaun finally fired back, though Desmond was unimpressed with the response.

"That's nice, but I'm not going into the Animus." Desmond replied, patting Connor's arm so that he'd release him to make some food. Connor slowly released him and watched as Desmond moved to the stove, pulling some things out of a box they had next to it so that he could make some of the instant noodles and stuff that they had there.

"You are only acting so high and mighty because of your damn body guards!" Shaun spat out, and Desmond could practically feel the glare burning into the back of his head.

"You three hungry?" Desmond asked nonchalantly, ignoring Shaun now.

  
_"Si!"_ Ezio said happily, clearly excited by the thought of food. Altair and Connor nodded, which made Desmond switch out the pot he was originally going to use for a larger one and pulled out a few packets of five minute noodles. Weren't the healthiest for Assassin's who had to keep a constant body build, but it was food.

"Hey! Don't you ignore me, asshole!" Shaun growled angrily.

"Was I supposed to respond to your last statement?" Desmond asked flatly, glaring over his shoulder.

    Shaun wasn't wrong entirely. If it wasn't for these three he'd have probably been in the Animus as soon as he'd gotten back yesterday and probably be in his first session of today by now. However, it didn't matter. Even if they were the reason he'd seen reality and finally grown a pair to tell the others to fuck off, didn't mean he had to acknowledge Shaun's bullshit.

"Tell me, would you have started any of this shit if they weren't here?" Shaun demanded as Desmond turned around while he waited for his water to boil.

"Probably not. I'd probably be in the Animus right now after having three to four sessions the day before with absolutely no sleep. I'd probably be too exhausted to argue about your insults and be more concerned about the Templar currently walking past you into the kitchen wondering if he's real or not." Desmond replied flatly. Altair and Ezio had taken seats at the table, obviously allowing Desmond to handle the Brit, but Connor had moved to stand beside the stove while Desmond cooked. He wasn't surprised, after Connor's statement a few minutes before Shaun's arrival in the kitchen Desmond was pretty sure the Mohawkian was going to be a little more attached to his side then the other two.

"So you are literally only doing this because of things they've said?" Shaun asked.

"Yes and no. Before I didn't think there was any other way but through the Animus, and most of the time I was too exhausted and worried about making sure I knew who I was to really think about the possibility. However, after a little over twenty four hours of sleep, my mind is a little clearer then it has been in a long time." Desmond replied.

    Desmond turned around as he heard the water popping and opened the bags of noodles before throwing them into the pot to cook. The silence grew while he used a noodle ladle to pull the noodles apart as they cooked. He hadn't heard Shaun's footsteps so Desmond knew he was still standing in the door way, however, he was clearly waiting for Desmond to either make some sense to him or trying to think up what to say next to try and get a reaction out of the American. While the silence stretched on, Desmond threw the flavor packets into the pot and mixed it for about three minutes so that it cooked into the noodles, before pulling out four bowls from another box and serving up the bowls. He wasn't sure how the three Assassins would like the cheap and quickly cooked noodles, but it was better than them not eating anything. He handed the first bowl to Connor, who took it happily and went to sit at the table with the other two. Desmond filled two more and set each in front of Altair and Ezio before finally filling his own and turning off the stove. He sat down at the table with Connor and Altair on either side of him and quickly shoved a fork full of hot noodles into his mouth.

    While he chewed he looked over at where Shaun was and found the Brit glaring at him. Desmond just stared back before turning his gaze away with a bored expression and swallowing the bite he had.

"How's the noodles?" Desmond asked, looking at the other three men around him. It took all his self control not to laugh at the mystified looks on their faces as they ate.

"It taste like chicken, yet contains no chicken." Altair said curiously.

"This is a strange soup I have never seen before what is it called?" Ezio asked as he lifted some of the noodles to his mouth. Connor simply ate them with a questioning yet pleased gaze.

"It's chicken flavored Ramen. A product produce sometime during the 1950s. Nothing fancy and not exactly the best meal, but fills the stomach so they do their job." Desmond replied, smiling as he took another bite. Altair hummed curiously and continued eating while Ezio was practically inhaling the noodles.

"Did any of you eat while I was asleep?" Desmond asked curiously as he realized all three were almost done with their bowls.

    The three looked at him before sheepishly looking back down at their bowls again and Desmond shook his head slightly.

"If you guys want more I can make some more." He offered eating his, but at a much slower rate.

"It would be much appreciated _tesoro._ " Ezio said with a nod. Desmond nodded and smiled again as all three men were now drinking down the broth in their bowls before setting them down and waiting for him to finish. All of them had completely forgotten about the Brit standing in the door way so when Shaun stepped into the kitchen the three men shot to their feet and unsheathed their blades. Desmond kept eating but glanced up and looked at the Brit. Shaun had stopped mid step and stared wide eyed at the three Assassins.

"Put the blades away please, Shaun may be a pain, but he isn't stupid enough to try anything with you three here." Desmond said before he started drinking the broth from his bowl. He heard the sound of the blades returning to their hidden sheathes and the sound of the three men sitting down.

    Desmond stood once he finished the broth and quickly set to work making some more Ramen. He looked over his shoulder to see that Shaun was still frozen and the American's three Assassins still had their eyes locked on the Brit. Shaking his head a bit, at both them and the fact he had just nonchalantly referred to the three as his, Desmond set some more water to boil over the stuff before turning around.

"Would you like some as well Shaun?" He asked calmly, snapping the Brit from his frozen state. Shaun nodded, but made no attempt to move closer.

"You ever gonna call off your guard dogs?" Shaun asked as Desmond pulled out several more bags of the instant noodles.

"If you think I have any control over what a Mentor Assassin, a Master Assassin and a Mohawk Native, who happens to be an Assassin as well, do then you have lost your damn mind." Desmond said flatly. He'd been in both Ezio and Altair's head before, if they deemed Shaun as a true threat he'd be long dead no matter what Desmond had to say, the only reason they hadn't killed him was because they didn't see him as such.

"You say that and yet they seemed to listen to you just a moment ago." Shaun shot back, annoyance in his voice.

"I've been in the minds of two of the three men sitting here and I can tell you for a fact that if they saw you as a threat you'd be on the floor with your throat cut open. And nothing I'd have to say would stop them, in fact it would probably only compel them even more." Desmond replied.

    Secretly Desmond was enjoying the fact the three men seemed extremely protective of him, but at the same time he wasn't helpless he could handle himself somewhat otherwise he wouldn't have lived as long as he had. However, once again, he couldn't control what they did and he was pretty sure nothing he said would stop their protective actions, in fact it would probably only make them more protective.

"Why would anything you say compel them to kill me? You saying you'd encourage it?!" Shaun demanded in fear.

"No, I'm saying they don't see you as a threat to me or them. If they did, me trying to defend you would only compel them in their attempts to make sure you didn't harm me." Desmond replied turning to throw the noodles in.

"Wow you think highly of yourself, if you believe they are that protective of you." Shaun snorted. The sound of a chair being thrown back and the Brit yelping in fear made Desmond shake his head before he looked over his shoulder. Altair had shot from his chair so quickly it had thrown it over and the Syrian was now currently holding Shaun off the ground by his shirt.

"Trust me, we are that protective of our _habibi_ and if you continue to insult him, I will happily be the one that tears out your tongue." Altair said darkly, while Desmond started throwing in the flavor packs.

  
_"_ _Don't do that Altair, despite his asshole personality, we need him able to talk. He's our main intelligence guy and he kind of needs the ability to speak in order to relay information to all of us."_ Desmond said in Arabic.

    The Syrian snorted at that, but a moment later Desmond heard the sound of Shaun being dropped to the ground and Altair's chair being picked up.

  
_"I doubt that, Informants can relay information without needing to speak all the time. I'm sure he could survive without his tongue."_ Altair replied, but sounding calmer than before. Desmond chuckled slightly as he served up some of the noodles into his bowl and holding it out for Shaun to come take it. After a moment, he heard scuffling and Shaun snatched it from his hand before hurrying out of the kitchen. Desmond smirked slightly. He would be lying if he said he didn't get a slight satisfaction out of the fact Shaun had just been scared shitless. Shaking his head, he took the three bowls that still sat on the table and filled them once more before setting them in front of the three Assassins and sitting down in his previous seat. He wasn't hungry for more so he sat without a bowl this time, silently watching a ghostly Ezio stalk around the kitchen while the other three ate.

  
_"Tesoro, are you okay?"_ Ezio asked, drawing Desmond's attention to the Italian.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He replied, cocking his head slightly from where it rested against his fist.

  
_"Are you sure? You seemed to be watching something for the last few minutes."_ Connor asked, sounding concerned. Altair, remained silent, most likely because he had already figured out what Desmond had been watching.

"Just part of the bleeding effect, oddly enough its less real with having the actual person, whose ghostly image is walking around, sitting at the table with me then it was before." Desmond said thoughtfully.

    The three Assassins looked at him curiously, but Desmond had returned to watching the ghostly Ezio already. He couldn't help it, it was a habit of his now to watch the images of Altair and Ezio in his spare time. And habits were hard to break, even with the actual men sitting right next to him.

  
_"Do you always watch your hallucinations so intently?"_ Altair's question pulled Desmond's eyes to him for a moment before it returned to the very hallucination he was speaking of.

  
_"Yes and no. By this point it's just habit, because if I'm not in the Animus or sleeping then there's not much else to do. However, when it first started I tried to ignore it as much as possible. It was painful to watch ghostly images of two people I'd wanted to meet so badly walk around just within my reach, but be unable to interact or touch them in anyway. After a while though, I craved it. Sure it was painful, but at least I got to see your faces on a regular basis. It was the only thing I found about the bleeding effect that felt worth loosing my mind over."_ Desmond replied, also speaking in Arabic like the Syrian. He didn't want to chance Lucy or the others walking in and hearing what he was saying. After all he'd never told them about how bad the Bleeding Effect was getting and they didn't care enough to try and push beyond him saying he was fine.

  
_"Are you saying, you were partially letting yourself go insane because you wanted to see us, tesoro?"_ Ezio asked, sounding concerned but at the same time touched.

    Desmond smiled slightly as he glanced at the Italian, he knew he didn't need to answer that question verbally. It was obvious that that was part of why he had been agreeing to keep going into the Animus. He quickly returned his eyes to the images as a younger Ezio slowly faded and a partially see through Altair took his place.

  
_"I hate to sound like a jerk, but that's stupid."_ Connor said, making Desmond chuckle slightly as he continued to watch the ghostly Altair stalk around the kitchen, stalking a prey he couldn't see.

  
_"It probably is, but I figured if I was cursed already to never meet any of you, going insane so that I could regularly have the comfort of ghostly images wasn't too out of the question."_ Desmond replied, finally returning his eyes to the three as his hallucinations vanished.

  
_"But you have met us, habibi, yet you still watch them."_ Altair stated. He didn't sound accusing just worried, which was a nice change compared the half assed concern he normally got from the others.

  
_"Like I said, by this point it's just habit."_ Desmond answered calmly.

    He knew it wouldn't calm their worries, but at least it would help them to understand why he couldn't stop himself. Besides he far more enjoyed the real things to the hallucinations, even if he'd only spent maybe all of six hours in total with the men since their arrival in his time.

  
_"Very well, then since you are not going to be in that device any more, what shall we do while your allies find a better way to find the Pieces of Eden?"_ Ezio asked, pushing his empty bowl away so he could set his arms on the table.

"Not much we can do. Abstergo's still after me, so I can't exactly leave the Villa for long periods of time. I could maybe convince Lucy to let us go to town for a few hours to get you guys some modern clothes, since I'm sure neither Shaun nor I have clothes that will fit you, but other then that we'll probably be here waiting for William to show up and try to guilt me into the chair." Desmond replied, switching back to English now that the topic wasn't so lecture worthy.

"I did notice, the Assassin's of your time seem to wear strange clothes." Connor stated, as he also finished his food.

"Yeah, we don't really have designated uniforms, but the more field or fight based Assassins, like myself, tend to wear white hoodies." Desmond explained.

"If we will not be going out in to public very often then why will we require 'modern clothes'?" Altair asked, still eating the last of his noodles.

"Because you will stick out like a sore thumb in public if we ever have to hide in plain sight." Desmond explained, "Just because Abstergo is after me doesn't mean there won't be times where we might be out in public."

    Altair nodded in understanding while he finished eating. Desmond sat back in the chair with a slight sigh and shoved his hands in his hoodie pocket. He was confused for a second when he found an object in there, but after a moment realized it was the Apple. He'd have to drop that off to Becca or Shaun before he went anywhere. Standing from his seat, he took all the now empty bowls and stacked them on the stove next to the pot. Lucy would wash them later, he wasn't sure how she did that since he was pretty sure they didn't have dish soap, but he didn't question it too much. Desmond then turned and headed out of the kitchen, the sound of chairs scraping as the three Assassins followed after him. He stepped into the Animus room to find Rebecca tweaking with the Animus 2.0, or Baby as she liked to call it, while Lucy was still on the phone. He pulled out the Apple as he walked in and strode over to where Shaun sat at a make shift desk and set it down.

"I'm taking these three into town to get them some normal clothes, cough up some money." Desmond stated flatly. He had quickly decided that he wasn't asking for permission any more, he wasn't a soldier he could do as he pleased.

"Excuse me? You can't go to town. Did you forget you are literally Abstergo's most wanted right now?" Shaun asked, his voice sounding annoyed while he typed away at his laptop.

"No, I haven't forgotten, but until we can get these three sent home they need to blend in and they can't do that in their current attire." Desmond replied calmly.

"Oh stop being a spoil sport Shaun, just give Dessy the money. Besides he's clearly set on not going into Baby, not that I blame him, so it's not like we need him at this exact moment." Rebecca said, sounding a bit annoyed with the Brit.

    At first Desmond thought maybe she was annoyed with his decision, but the sweet little smile she sent him as reassurance stilled that thought. He sent her a grateful smile as Shaun begrudgingly fished out his wallet and handed the American several hundred dollars in cash and a pair of keys.

"Nothing too expensive alright." Shaun spat angrily, before turning to the Apple Desmond had set down, "Please tell me, you plan to leave that here?"

"Of course, I do. Contrary to what you might think I am not stupid." Desmond shot back, turning to head over to the three Assassins. The three followed him out of the room and out of the Villa to the van.

"I know you guys don't like this thing, but I'm so not walking all the way to town." Desmond said as he pulled up his hood. He unlocked the van and got behind the wheel.

"I'm gonna need you guys to keep your hoods up while you are in town as much as possible, especially you Altair, you look too much like me and if Abstergo is watching any of the camera's they could confuse you for me." Desmond instructed, looking over at the Syrian who had taken shotgun. They all nodded and Desmond quickly started the van to head out.

 

 

 

    Taking the three Assassins to town and into modern shops was less pain staking then Desmond originally thought. They were all curious of most things, but seemed to be holding questions for later and simply followed Desmond's instructions without complaint. The American was currently standing outside a fitting room while the three men were trying on different clothes he thought might fit them. He'd already had them try on some white hoodies and was currently holding them when one of the fitting rooms opened. He looked over as Connor stepped out dressed in a normal black t-shirt and a pair of dark jeans.

"How do those fit?" He asked referring to the jeans.

"These trousers are strange." Connor replied, making Desmond chuckle.

    The American stepped closer and directed for Connor to turn around. The Native did as he directed and jumped in surprise when Desmond tugged on the back of jeans. They fit Connor fine, so he checked the tag in the back.

"What are you doing?" Connor asked curiously.

"Checking the tag for the size. Now we can grab a couple other pairs the same size as these so you don't have to try anymore." Desmond replied, checking the tag of the shirt next. He noted the sizes and gently pushed Connor towards the fitting room again.

"Change back to your other clothes and keep that shirt and pants with you when you come out." Desmond instructed before striding back towards the clothes in the store.

    He returned to the fitting rooms with a few shirts and a couple other pairs of jeans for Connor. The Native was watching Ezio curiously as the Italian stood checking his clothes in a mirror. The Mohawkian held the jeans and shirt from before neatly in his hands and Desmond passed off the shirts, jeans and hoodie he'd picked out for him before walking up to Ezio.

"Hold still Ezio." Desmond instructed as he checked the tags on the shirt and jeans the Italian was trying on. Ezio stopped moving, appearing unaffected by Desmond checking the tags, not surprising since the Italian was probably used to being groped at by women all the time. Once he had the sizes he directed Ezio to change and went to get some more clothes for the Italian. When he had returned Altair was still in the fitting room, which confused Desmond a bit. He knew Altair wasn't too far off from his own size in clothes, so he shouldn't be taking this long.

    Walking up to the fitting room Altair was in, Desmond knocked on the door softly.

"You still alive in there Altair?" He called softly. He heard shuffling behind the door and it slowly opened.

"I do not like your modern clothes." Altair said as he peered out through the crack in the door.

"Well sorry to burst your bubble, but you kinda have to wear them otherwise you will blow our cover in public." Desmond replied, slightly amused by the Syrian's unhappy tone, "Now come on, I know at least some of those should've fit you."

    Altair grumbled something and slowly opened the door more and stepped out. Desmond discreetly made sure they weren't in view of any camera's since Altair wasn't wearing a hood and then checked the jeans on Altair.

"These are too loose, turn around the next size down should fit fine." Desmond instructed. The Syrian did as told and he quickly checked the tag of the jeans to note the size below it and then checked the t-shirt.

"Alright now go change back into your other clothes." Desmond said turning and passing over Ezio's clothes and hoodie to him before going to hunt for clothes for Altair. He could feel the men's eyes on his back as he walked amongst the isles, but focused on keeping out of camera shot and finding clothes in the right size. Once he had he returned to the men and shoved the rest of the clothes into Altair's arms and led them to the shoes section. They only needed a pair of tennis shoes, but figuring out shoe size was going to be a pain especially since during their times there was no such thing you just made shoes that fit to your feet.

    Luckily for Desmond though, they spent maybe a half hour in the shoes before finding all their sizes and then quickly grabbed three boxes of plain black tennis shoes before heading to the counters. He set the boxes down, taking time to make sure both his hood and Altair's covered their faces well enough before taking all the clothes from them and setting them on the counter.

  
_"Your friends wear some interesting costumes."_ The cashier said curiously as she glanced at them all.

  
_"Yeah, it's kind of a thing, I forgot mine today."_ Desmond replied nonchalantly, pulling out the money. She simply nodded, but glanced at Ezio several times with a flirtatious smile while she rung them up. Desmond was a bit surprised by how much her flirtations pissed him off, he'd never cared about Ezio being flirted with while in the Animus. Shaking it off with a frown, he handed the woman money and took the change before grabbing the bags and handing them off to the men behind him. He headed for the exit as he pulled out the keys for the van, until he heard the woman calling Ezio back that is.

  
_"Hey I'm having a party tonight, if you'd like to come!"_ She called making Desmond glare over his shoulder slightly. He wasn't surprised when Ezio turned back and smiled charmingly at the woman, making Desmond snort in slight disgust and turn to keep heading towards the door. _"Sorry bella, but I must decline. I have other places to be."_ Ezio replied, smoothly.

    Desmond could practically hear the girl at the counter swooning at his voice, but continued out of the store without a word. He didn't understand why it pissed him off so much, he knew how Ezio was and knew how women were with him it shouldn't surprise him that it was no different in his time. He shook the anger away best he could and moved to the van, unlocking it before climbing in behind the wheel. Altair once again took shotgun and they waited for Ezio to come out of the store. Once the man did, Desmond started the car and pulled his hood over his face a bit tighter before starting to drive.

"Desmond what is a phone number?" Ezio asked, making Desmond glance back for a second.

"Why do you ask Ezio?" Desmond asked, having a feeling he knew why the Italian was asking his question.

"The _bella_ handed me a piece of paper saying this was her number." Ezio explained handing Desmond a piece of receipt paper. It had an eleven digit number on it and it made Desmond's blood boil slightly. He crumpled the paper up and threw it out the window without a word, ignoring Ezio's whine of protest.

"It's nothing you'll be using Ezio." He said flatly, ignoring the look Altair sent him and focusing on driving.

 

 

 

    He stepped into the Villa pulling his hood off as he called out to the others that they were back. A moment later as Desmond was heading towards the Sanctuary, Lucy appeared and stopped him.

"Your father wants us to fly back to the U.S. tomorrow. We already have passports and tickets set up for those three, so make sure you are ready to go by tomorrow morning." Lucy instructed.

"Oh so the old man can't be bothered to come out here to scold me, he's flying me in to him instead huh?" Desmond asked sarcastically waving Lucy away before she could respond and heading down to the Sanctuary.

"How are we going to fly to our destination Desmond?" Connor asked curiously as they entered the large circular room.

"On a plane. It's kind of like a car only a lot bigger and it can fly through the air." Desmond replied as he moved to sit on the cot. Altair moved to his statue and sat on the pedestal just near the statues feet, while Ezio and Connor sat on the floor by the cot.

"A plane? Is it anything like Leonardo's flying machine that he invented?" Ezio asked, that seemed to peek Connor's interest as well which meant he'd probably seen some of Leonardo's sketches, not a surprise if he was in the order.

"Actually yes it is. Plane's are based off of Leonardo's flying device as well as the work of the Wright brothers who created the first flying plane based off his work." Desmond replied.

    All three men looked at him curiously appearing interested in the thing he was speaking off, which was almost amusing to the American. He'd never seen someone so interested in what he had to say before and it was almost comical to him that three Assassins were the ones to do it.

"So we get to fly in one of these planes tomorrow?" Altair asked.

"Yep, you'll have to wear some of the clothes we got today and probably pack away most of your weapons so that no one will get suspicious, but if I know Shaun he'll find a way to get us through security without actually going through metal detectors." Desmond replied. The curious gazes he got at the mention of a metal detector made Desmond realize he would probably be spending the rest of the day explaining quite a few things that they would all need to know before they got up tomorrow. Not that he minded, it felt good to actually feel somewhat useful for once even if it was only filling three Assassins in on modern day things.

 

 

\------------------------

 

 

    Desmond sighed as he sat in the seat on the plane. He never thought getting through an airport was very fun, add on three men who knew next to nothing about how the modern day worked and it was a nightmare. The plane they were on was a large passenger plane that had three seats on each side of the plane and a set of four seat in the center with an isle for walking on either side to separate them from the set of three seats. Desmond was sitting near one of the isles with Altair right next to him followed by Ezio and then Connor on the other isle seat. In the seats across the isle from him, Desmond's other three companions sat. Rebecca next to the window Shaun in the center and Lucy in the isle seat close to him.

"Are you sure they are going to be okay?" Lucy asked as she leaned over to Desmond.

"I already gave them some meds that will hopefully knock them out before we even start to taxi out to the run way." Desmond replied with a sigh. Lucy nodded and straightened in her seat leaving Desmond to his own thoughts.

    The young man was exhausted, he'd been up late explaining things to the three men next to him and then to top it off he had tossed and turned while he'd tried sleeping while fighting off nightmares. More then once he woke up with one of the three men leaning over him in concern only to have Desmond knock them on their ass before he would pin them down with his hidden blade to their throat. He'd woken up twice thinking he was Altair and once as Ezio. It had concerned the three men greatly and yet they never once tried to pry information from Desmond. He was thankful for that and simply welcomed who ever found the courage to embrace him after each fit. Now he was exhausted, but the last thing he wanted was for him to have a fit while on a plane full of innocents.

    The sudden feeling of someone leaning against his shoulder had Desmond glancing over at Altair. The Syrian looked half asleep already, with his hood pulled up over his face like Desmond's. Looking at the other two, he chuckled slightly as he noticed both Connor and Ezio had already passed out leaning against each other. It was clear the meds were finally kicking in and he was glad that the three wouldn't start panicking when the plane took off. His attention was pulled back to Altair as the older man wrapped his arms around Desmond's and rubbed his hooded head against his shoulder before finally settling against him. Desmond smiled and leaned his head against the Syrian's a bit as the med's finally took Altair into a fit full rest. After the three Assassin's were lost in their slumber the plane began to taxi away from the gate to the run way. As for Desmond, the plane was barely in the air before he found fighting his exhaustion impossible and he too was pulled into a deep sleep.

 

 

    Desmond woke just before the plane landed, but didn't wake the other three Assassin's until they were at the gate and most of the plane had emptied out. Thankfully, none of the men flipped out upon being shaken awake and even recovered from their slightly disoriented and drugged sleep rather quickly. Though they had left Italy in the early morning, they were currently getting off the plane to the same morning they'd just left. They had landed at J.F.K National Airport in New York City and after grabbing a few of the boxes and bags from baggage claim were all quickly ushered into the parking lot of the airport by Lucy and Shaun.

    The three time traveling Assassins stuck close to Desmond as he stood waiting for Shaun and Lucy to get back with whatever vehicle they were renting, or stealing if the case may be. Rebecca had her headphones on and was bobbing her head from where she sat on the curb of the sidewalk seeming unaffected by the chilly air. Then again all but Altair seemed unaffected by the chilly New York air, as the Syrian had practically plastered himself to Desmond the moment they left the warm airport. Not surprising to the American in all honesty since the Syrian had literally grown up in a place where it probably didn't drop below sixty degrees Fahrenheit. The currently cloudy skies and the no more then maybe forty degree air was probably a bit of a shock to the Syrian even with the thick white hoodie and thick jeans he wore. Desmond glanced at Altair briefly as the Syrian buried his face into the back of one of his shoulders to try and keep his face warm, but he then quickly turned his eyes back to the parking lot.

    Every now and then his eyes would easily slip into Eagle Vision and check the few people that would come through. Thankfully all of them remained gray and dull in color. Desmond sighed as he felt jet lag slowly taking over his body and with a quick glance around noticed the three Assassins quickly succumbing to it as well. However, they didn't have to wait much longer before two vans pulled up to the curb they were at. Becca shot to her feet and grabbed one of the boxes near her. Desmond stood back and watched as Shaun got out of one of the Vans and opened up the back to help Becca put everything in the seat-less back of the vehicle. Lucy got out of the other vehicle and walked up to Desmond.

"Shaun will be driving the van with all the Equipment, you and the others will be riding with me." Lucy explained looking over the Jet lagged men.

"And where exactly are we going?" Desmond asked. The others hadn't said where William had asked them to meet him and until now Desmond hadn't really cared enough to ask.

"A few states away." Lucy replied cryptically. Desmond narrowed his eyes at her while Altair, seeming to sense his sudden tension, tightened his arms around Desmond's waist.

"Which State, Lucy?" Desmond demanded coldly.

    Lucy looked away and Desmond's suspicions of where he believed they were going grew even more. She was hiding the State because she knew he wouldn't want to go there, which meant it was one of three states. Either California, but they would be flying there if that were the case, Texas, which was more probable but they had to go through several different states to get there and that would be at most a two day trip, or it was South Dakota and that was the last place Desmond ever wanted to be again. South Dakota was where the farm had been, where his prison had been and the place he had run from when he was sixteen.

"You aren't going to answer me are you?" Desmond asked angrily. Lucy shook her head at him and that pretty much confirmed his suspicions causing his entire body to stiffen like a board and his face to turn into a scowl that could rival the Syrian behind him.

    Altair immediately felt Desmond's sudden stiffening and straightened up behind him slightly. The other two seemed to sense the sudden change as well and turned to Desmond with concern.

"Lucy, please tell me we aren't going to South Dakota?" He asked with a calm he wasn't feeling. She flinched away from his question and it took all his will power not to throw Altair away from him and storm towards the blonde.

"We're going to the Farm?" He asked, yet knowing the answer. He heard Rebecca and Shaun pause in their movements to get Baby in the van before continuing. The blonde stepped back and nodded cautiously. That confirmation was all Desmond needed to snap his grip on his anger.

    He practically ripped himself from Altair's arms and stalked towards Lucy with anger, yet no murderous intent in his stride. That didn't stop the woman from backing away a bit as he approached her and glared down at her.

"And when exactly were any of you going to tell me this? After my father had me locked away in the facility or just before?" Desmond demanded angrily.

"Desmond, you aren't going to be-"

"Bullshit! Don't you lie to me, Lucy! I could care less about anyone else, but I swear to god you lie to me and it will be the last time I ever trust you!" Desmond shouted interrupting the blonde's attempt to calm him, "You call my father and inform him if he wants to come talk to me, he can meet me outside of the Black Hills near the edge of Rapid City, but I am not setting foot near that prison."

    With that said, Desmond immediately turned and climbed into the back portion of the van. He sat in the very back row of seats and glared out the windshield in front where Rebecca and Shaun were finishing loading the first van. Desmond was so lost in his anger that he didn't even notice Altair, Connor and Ezio climbing into the van as well, until Altair sat down right beside him.

  
_"Are you alright, habibi?"_ Altair asked, keeping his voice low as Rebecca and Lucy climbed into the passenger and driver seat respectively. The American sighed at the question and glanced at the Syrian before looking to where Ezio and Connor sat in the seats just in front of them. Both the Italian and Mohawkian were watching him with curiosity and concern.

  
_"Yes, I am fine. I just... You remember me telling you about where I grew up?"_ Desmond asked, leaning back in his seat and leaning his head against the head rest. The men nodded at him and waited patiently for him to continue.

  
_"It's a place for Assassin's similar to that of Masyaf only instead its called the Farm but unlike Masyaf its a lot less voluntary. The Farm was a prison to me and needless to say I swore I would never go back there for as long as I had free will."_ Desmond explained quietly.

  
_"We understand Desmond."_ Connor said gently, both he and Ezio turned so that they could look at the younger man.

  
_"These allies of yours are going there?"_ Ezio inquired curiously, receiving a nod from Desmond.

    Most of the Assassins would think him pathetic for being unable to even set foot near the Farm, but he was relieved to see the understanding in the eyes of the three men around him.

  
_"We will stay with you wherever you decide to stop at habibi, even if we have to fight the whole Brotherhood to keep you away from that place."_ Altair assured, getting Desmond to chuckle slightly. Desmond leaned over and set his head against the Syrian's shoulder with a slight smile.

  
_"Why couldn't you three have been born in this time?"_ Desmond asked, sorrowfully. His question only received silence, not that he actually expected an answer, but Altair did shift and wrap his arm around Desmond to hug him closer to his side. The silence stretched on as Lucy followed behind Shaun and before long Desmond slowly slipped into a light sleep, one he hoped wouldn't end in a nightmare or him trying to kill any of the people in the car with him.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

    It took them a day and a half to reach Rapid City and by the time they did the three Assassins had grown restless. They couldn't sit still in the van and seemed more then happy to get out when Desmond demanded Lucy stop at a restaurant just inside the city. Lucy tried to convince him that nothing would happen to him while at the farm, but he refused to listen. Rapid City was as close as he was willing to get to the Farm and had no intention of setting foot beyond it to the Black Hills where the Farm was located. Shaun complained while he pulled out his back pack as well as the three for the other men, but after an hour of insulting and shouting that only received a cold and calm gaze from his intended target he left with Becca to take the equipment to the farm. Lucy stayed with Desmond and the others to be sure she could call for back up if anything happened. Not that they should have a major fear of Templar's here. This was a strictly Assassin related town, so only Assassins and innocents here as far as Desmond's Eagle Vision could tell.

    Desmond looked around the semi-busy streets with a calculating gaze and his shoulders tensed. Too many of the people that walked by were tinged in blue when he used his Eagle Vision. It was causing him to become restless and made him want to run to the nearest bus station and go anywhere but here. The sudden feeling of a hand on his shoulder made Desmond look over his shoulder to Ezio who was giving him a reassuring smile. Desmond smiled back a bit before returning his gaze to the streets. Silence stretched out as they waited for Lucy to get a call from Becca, Altair taking to pacing the sidewalk due to restlessness while Connor and Ezio scanned the streets beside Desmond. They waited maybe another minute before Lucy's phone rang and drew the attention of all four men to her.

"Hello?" Lucy answered, listening to the person on the other end of the phone, "I'm sorry sir, he threatened to jump out the window if I- No, he won't listen to me. I've tried, but- Yes, sir. I will meet you there."

    Desmond watched Lucy cautiously, having a feeling he knew exactly who had been on the other side of that phone call. She turned to speak to him, but the glare he sent her was withering and she snapped her mouth shut at the sight.

"You have fun with that meeting, but I'm not getting in that van and I'm not going to the Farm." Desmond replied with a growl.

"Desmond, just because this is an Assassin based town doesn't mean it's safe here for you, we need to go to the Farm so that we can get you out of view of cameras." Lucy replied sounding frustrated.

"I think I can handle avoiding cameras for a few hours thanks." He spat back, turning and walking down the street without another word. None of the men who followed after him complained, in fact all three seemed very eager to be walking after being forced to basically sit still for almost four days. Lucy called after them, but Desmond ignored her as he turned down one of the smaller streets in the town and continued walking.

    Desmond could still navigate this town even after the decade he'd spent away from it, and there was only one place in the town he remembered to be like a sanctuary to him. Stopping at a stop light, he pressed the crossing button and shoved his hands in his hoodie pockets.

"Where are we going Desmond?" Connor asked as the Mohawkian stopped beside him.

"Someplace I know I won't be lectured about needing to go to the Farm." He replied simply, walking across the street as the sign changed. "And where is that _tesoro?_ " Ezio asked, curiously.

"The Family of a friend of mine while I was at the Farm owns the place. They may be the only Assassin's I never had a grudge against before Abstergo took me. It's only a couple blocks away come on." Desmond replied, picking up his pace.

    The three men fell silent and followed Desmond without further questions. Eventually he stopped in front of a small building that had no windows besides the ones on the front door and the sign was turned to close. Smiling slightly at the sight of it, he opened the door and motioned for the others to follow him down the set of stairs just inside. A bell went off as they walked in and he quickly strode down the stairs looking around as he stepped down into the large underground bar.

"We're closed! Come back at eight!" A feminine voice called from somewhere behind the bar counter.

"Even to old friends who have probably been away too long?!" Desmond called with a smile as he pulled off his hood. The sudden appearance of a young woman with long blonde hair popping up from behind the counter had Desmond grinning. The woman stared at him with a set of dark gray eyes that almost appeared like storm clouds and a bright smile spread across her face.

"Well I'll be a Templar, Desmond Miles, you bastard what the hell are you doing here?" The woman demanded, standing up to her full height and moving out from behind the bar.

"Templar my ass, you are far too much of a lover of Assassinations to ever be anything but an Assassin." Desmond replied jokingly, taking a step forward and pulling the woman into his arms, "It's good to see you Natalie."

    Natalie hugged him back, before pulling back still with a grin on her face. She then seemed to notice the three men standing behind Desmond and tensed slightly.

"Relax Nat, they are with me. They are fellow Assassin's. I don't know if you've heard any news from my father or what Lucy told him, but-"

"Oh so these are the three time-traveling Assassin's that William has been bitching about." Natalie interrupted immediately relaxing and grinning at the men, "Well anyone who pisses Bill off and takes care of my boy here is more then welcome."

"Your boy?" Altair asked, sounding less then pleased by Natalie's possessive claim of him.

"Chill there lover boy, you may carry his name, but this man here is as much mine as he is yours if not more so." Natalie replied, seriously before breaking out into a grin again, "Now who's hungry?"

    The sound of Desmond's stomach growling answered her question and made the blonde laugh loudly.

"Always were easy to read Des." She said nodding towards a set of double doors off to the side of the bar. All four men followed after her as she pushed through the doors and Desmond was greeted by the wonderful sight of a large kitchen.

"So I'm guessing Lucy told my father about the names?" Desmond asked a bit anxiously. He had never told Natalie about the names in fear his father might somehow squeeze it out of her.

"Yeah, he flipped his shit too. Apparently having three male soul mates was the straw that broke the camels back. He went on a full on ranting rampage to me and several other younger Assassins who were in the area at the time about how we all needed to find spouses that could help us produce the future generations and not be a disappointment like you." Natalie replied as she weaved through the kitchen and stopped at one of the many stoves in there to pull out pots, "Nearly decked his ass when he called you a disappointment, actually did when his insults of you got derogatory. Asshole learned real fast that I may not be a master, but I could fuck his shit up without breaking a sweat."

    Desmond laughed at her last statement, before he lifted himself onto one of the metal counters across from the stove. Altair and Connor immediately flocked to either side of him while Ezio stood back examining the kitchen curiously.

"Of course, you got the privilege of knocking my father out before I did, bitch." Desmond said with a grin.

"What can I say, I don't let that jackass talk shit about my favorite boy." Natalie said, grinning as she moved to a nearby walk in cooler, before she came out with some kind of meat and several other ingredients.

  
_"Desmond, is this the friend you mentioned?"_ Altair inquired, sounding almost a bit jealous.

  
_"Yeah, although speaking in Arabic isn't going to save you from her, she speaks several different languages."_ Desmond replied with a grin.

  
_"Not limited to Arabic, Italian, Spanish, Mandarin, Greek as well as Latin, Japanese, Russian and several dead languages."_ Natalie replied, making all three men look at her surprised.

  
_"You speak Italian, bella?"_ Ezio asked, with a grin, easily slipping to his mother tongue.

  
_"Yes I do indeed Signore. And don't let Dessy over there hear you call too many women that, he can be the jealous kind."_ Natalie replied as she began making some sort of sauce in the pot she had.

"NAT!" Desmond exclaimed, trying to fight the blush he could feel rising in his cheeks.

"Oh is he now?" Ezio said with a mischievous grin that made Desmond bury his face in his hands.

    Desmond could practically hear the evil grin spreading across the blonde's face at Ezio's question.

"Oh yeah, Desmond used to get overly jealous when we were teens. I was the only one besides his brothers who really defended him and had his back so if anyone talked to me or flirted he got super jealous." Natalie replied. Desmond groaned in embarrassment. He was starting to rethink his idea of coming to see her and wanted nothing more than to leave.

"Brothers?" Connor said curiously.

"Yeah Dylan and Duncan, Des is the baby but always seemed to be the one William came down on the hardest. Dylan's the perfect Assassin in William's opinion and feels the need to impress it on his two younger sons." Natalie replied. Normally Desmond would've probably snapped at anyone who shared information like this without his permission, but it was Natalie and she wasn't telling just anyone she was telling his soul mates.

"Can we please stop talking about my life and have you focus on feeding me instead?" Desmond demanded, dropping his hands from his face. "Of course not Dessy, when am I ever gonna get the chance to embarrass the hell out of you to your soul mates ever again?" Natalie replied, ever the little devil that she was.

    Desmond glared at her back though his glare held no true anger, simply annoyance. However, before he could say anything else to the devilish imp in disguise, the kitchen doors banged open and all five of them turned to look at the doorway. Desmond's eyes widened as two men with messy brown hair and dark eyes stalked in and over to near Ezio. They both stared at Desmond with cold gazes and the younger man could practically feel Connor and Altair tense in preparation for an attack.

"Speak of the Devils and they shall appear." Natalie said, turning to the men with a grin.

"The only Devil here is you Natalie Azrael and you know it." One of the men replied, not taking his eyes off Desmond.

"True as that may be, every Devil has her lackeys and since you mostly answer to my orders on missions that makes you my lackeys." Natalie shot back, turning back to her pot.

    Neither men responded to her, just kept staring at Desmond, causing the three men around Desmond to tense further and practically kick into protection mode. Desmond heard Ezio's hidden blades slip from their sheathes, but never got the chance to stop the Italian. Instead it was Natalie who swiftly stepped back into the path of Ezio and grinned between all the men.

"Boys I suggest you introduce yourself to Dessy's boys before they decide to take you out in fear of you being a threat to him." Natalie suggested as she looked to the other two men, "Because if blood gets in my kitchen it will be you two who clean it up."

    Saying what she needed to say, Natalie stepped back to her pot and the two men relaxed their stances.

"Well if the jackass hadn't come to see you before us we wouldn't be acting this way." The second man said with a slight pout.

"Yeah you would think as his brother's he'd come to see us first." The first said still staring at Desmond. The brother comment instantly caught the three Assassin's attention and Ezio sheathed his blades.

"So you are Desmond's brothers?" Connor asked in surprise.

"Yes, I'm Dylan and this is Duncan." The first man replied, "Now Desmond are you gonna get your ass over here and say hello or do we have to fight our way through your body guards."

    That statement was all Desmond needed to snap out of his daze and he was almost instantly off the counter and throwing his arms around both his brothers. He hadn't seen them in little less than a decade and he had missed them far more then he thought he was capable of. He felt his brothers instantly embrace him back tightly and may have heard Natalie 'awwwwwing' in the back ground, but chose to ignore her. After a moment he pulled back and grinned at his brothers both of them grinning back.

"How you been little brother?" Duncan asked ruffling his hair a bit.

"Been better as of recently, better than about three months ago." Desmond replied.

"We heard about your capture in Abstergo, Duncan and I wanted to go in to get you, but Dad denied us. He even went so far as to put us on lockdown in the barracks." Dylan replied.

"Bastard wouldn't even tell us what they were doing to you in there." Duncan growled.

"Slowly making me lose my mind." Desmond replied with a bored expression. He didn't like talking about the bleeding effect, but his brothers as well as Natalie needed to know.

"Yeah, he wouldn't tell us, but no one can keep any of our little devils informers from keeping her in the loop of what had been going on with you. Most days I think Natalie scares the others more then dad does." Dylan replied shaking his head.

"How are you doing by the way, Natalie told us you were now going into the Animus Becca built. We heard about the effects it can have." Duncan inquired, making Desmond smile slightly.

    Desmond really didn't want to tell them how bad it was. In fact the only ones who knew were Altair, Connor and Ezio, but these were his brothers and Natalie. As much as he didn't want to worry them, they would only worry more because they could see through his bullshit like they were human lie detectors. Then again now that he thought about it, it wasn't nearly as bad as it was before the arrival of the three men behind him. He hadn't seen a single ghostly image since the last day in Italy and the last night in Italy had been the last time he'd had any type of nightmares. Even though it had only been a couple days, it was still odd considering he'd gone from having several symptoms of the bleeding effect to absolutely none almost instantly.

"Honestly, if you had asked me that about two days ago, I'd have told you I was going bat shit crazy, but now..." Desmond faded off on his reply trying to come up with a reason why the bleeding effect seemed to have just vanished over one night.

"Now, what?" Duncan asked sounding anxious.

"Now there's nothing. I haven't seen any ghostly images in over two days, haven't had any nightmares while I've slept and there hasn't been any time I wasn't absolutely sure of who I am." Desmond replied in confusion, "I know that probably sounds odd, but considering I went from having all of those things almost on an hourly basis for the last month, as well as nightmares every time I slept it's extremely confusing."

    His brothers nodded slightly seeming confused for a moment before looking past their younger brother to the men behind him. Desmond immediately saw the question in their eyes, then saw them look back at him.

"And who are they? We were told you only had Becca, the Brit and Lucy in your cell?" Dylan inquired.

"Remember your fathers freak out a few days ago about Desmond and some sudden arrivals in his cell?" Natalie asked, before Desmond could answer. Both his brothers nodded and Desmond quickly retreated back to Altair and Connor. He had never told his brother's he was gay or about the names and like with their father, he feared their reactions. He probably feared their reactions more then William's.

"Good then you heard about how they were basically time travelers possibly dragged here by the Apple Desmond retrieved?" She asked, receiving another nod.

"You also remember how William was freaking out and telling all of us to make sure to find someone who could give us all little assassins?" Another nod.

"This is those three men and also Desmond's soul mates. I haven't gotten their names yet, but if either of you flip your shit on Desmond, you can bet your ass that all three of them will not hesitate to defend him."

    Silence filled the kitchen as Natalie nonchalantly continued mixing the sauce she was making. Desmond glanced at his brothers worriedly, but instead found Ezio's back directly in front of him, while Altair and Connor wrapped an arm around his waist.

"Wow easy there." Dylan said calmly, clearly noticing the protective stances the three men had taken, "We would never react like William would. We love Des for who he is, we're just surprised to discover he doesn't have just one, but three soul mates."

"Exactly, we didn't even know he ever got his name let alone three of them." Duncan replied. Immediately all three men relaxed, but Altair and Connor did not release him.

"Why didn't you ever tell us, Des?" Duncan asked as Ezio stepped back a bit. The Italian seemed to become extremely curious about what Natalie was making and moved closer to her side to inspect it.

    Desmond fidgeted slightly at the question, feeling extremely stupid now for having feared his brothers reactions. However, he could easily chalk that up to the fear of his father's reaction.

"I guess I was so afraid of what William would do if he found out that I was too afraid to tell either of you." Desmond replied.

"The names we can understand, but clearly Nat already knew about your sexual orientation." Dylan said accusingly.

"Hey that one isn't his fault its yours. You boys aren't perceptive enough to pick up on the small signs like I did." Natalie defended him immediately, looking over her shoulder before returning to letting Ezio try the sauce. Desmond pointed to Natalie as agreement before receiving an accepting nod from his brothers.

"Alright so what are you cooking for lunch Nat?" Dylan asked walking up to the woman's other side.

"Spaghetti, I figured we had an Italian in my kitchen so I'm making Italian. Later I'll make an Arab dish or something and so on." Natalie replied. It was clear she already knew Desmond had come to her for a place to stay and not just a place to get away.

"Sauce needs to sit for a bit boys to make the spices really get cooked in so why don't we go down stairs." Natalie suggested pulling out her iPod and setting an alarm on it.

"Down stairs?" Connor asked curiously obviously confused since they had already come down a set of stairs to get into the bar.

"Oh honey, if you think my bar only had one basement level, I'm gonna have to teach you some things." Natalie replied sweetly, before leading the way out of the kitchen.

    Dylan and Duncan followed behind her with Desmond quickly trailing after his older brothers. They weren't much taller then him, but standing next to them after all these years he still felt like the baby out of them. He heard the other three follow after him and the whole group followed Natalie through the bar and into a good sized office. Desmond leaned against the wall as she fiddled with a metal filing cabinet before it slid to the side with a slight hissing noise to reveal an opening with a set of spiraling stairs.

"Run away rogues first." Natalie said waving her hand at Desmond.

"Hey, I came back!" He said indignantly.

"Yes and you didn't go straight to the farm you ran to me, now get to stepping princess." She shot back with a smirk. Desmond shook his head at her teasing and quickly lead the others down the stair case.

    It easily led a good five stories below ground with the occasional lantern lighting the way. He jumped off the final three steps to the cement ground below and looked around the brightly lit hall. The hall way was long with several other hallways and doors branching off from it and the walls were painted a grayish white color. Desmond stepped aside as Natalie came down right behind him and she quickly led the way down the hall before taking one of the other halls that branched off it.

"Alright boys listen up!" She called, referring to the three Assassins now shuffling behind Desmond, "This hall is the major hall you four will be using, the double doors at the end lead to the training room, plenty of equipment and stuff for both parkour and weapons training."

    Natalie then turned to a door to her left; their right; and slid it open with a flourish, allowing it to disappear into the wall. Desmond and the other three peeked inside and noticed it was a decent size kitchen with a table that could seat at least six people in one part of it.

"Kitchen obviously, I'll have the boys there stalk it before the bar opens this evening, but its open to all of you use it as you see fit its stocked with cooking utensils and such so as long as you clean up after yourselves you won't hear me bitching." She said with a pointed look at Desmond who just smirked at her, "Now on too the rec room."

    She left the door to the kitchen open and quickly hurried to the next one down before sliding it open as well. The Rec Room was the equivalent of a living room, had a large T.V. hanging on the wall with a simple entertainment center under it that held several different consoles and a cable box on it. A large sofa sat in front of it with a coffee table between it and the entertainment center. At the other end of the room away from the couch was a set of desks in either corner with two brand new laptops and desk chairs.

"Rec Room, the cable box does work all the way down here because, well, I'm awesome that's how and the internet works like a charm not to mention you are connected to my own private network that is constantly bouncing off IP addresses like we're a bunch of drug dealers." Natalie stated, getting snorts of amusement from all three Miles brothers. She then moved across the hall and pushed open one of the five doors that lined it.

"All the doors on this side are bedrooms large enough to fit a king size bed into each." She said sliding the open.

    Inside, like she'd said, there was a large king size bed against one wall in the corner with a set of white sheets and a plain black duvet comforter. A dresser sat against the far right wall right next to a door that could be the closet. A second door was closer to the far right corner on the wall the headboard of the bed was pressed against.

"Not anything super fancy, I house Assassins not Kings, but the closet is the door next to the dresser and the other leads to a private bathroom. You four are welcome to fight over who gets which room, but for the most part they are all the same in size and style." Natalie instructed and slid the door shut, before turning to them, "Any questions?"

    Desmond glanced back at the three men behind him, watching as they shook their heads. He had been here once as a kid a long time ago. He'd gotten lost and he couldn't remember it being this clean and well kept. Natalie had certainly turned this place around for the better and clearly took pride in the safe haven that her ancestors had created centuries ago.

"So we get this Hall or Wing or whatever to ourselves?" Desmond asked.

"Yep, I don't have anyone else down here currently since every one mostly stays on the Farm, so you guys got lucky and got the Hall closest to the stairs." Natalie replied, "Now you four settle in, the boys and me are gonna go back up stairs finish setting a few things up for tonight and by then I should be bringing down dinner."

    Desmond nodded and waved as she hooked her arms through each of his brothers own and dragged them back down the hall. Once she was out of sight he turned to the four.

"I'm gonna have to properly introduce you three to them over dinner, but for now we should settle in. I don't know about you guys but I could use a shower." Desmond said, turning to slide open the door to the bedroom they still stood in front of.

"Shower?" Connor asked curiously, making Desmond chuckle a bit.

"Here I'll show you guys since I'm sure all the bathrooms are the same." He said, stepping inside and waving them in as he headed for the bathroom door. The bathroom, like all the rooms down in the Catacombs was simple and nothing special. It had a shower, sink and toilet along with any basic product anyone would need for hygiene.

    Desmond walked over to the shower and slid the door open. He turned to the other three as they hovered in the door and quickly pointed to the knobs.

"These, control the temperature, the one on the left is hot the one on the right is cold." He said turning them and stepping back as the water shot out of the shower head. The three Assassins watched intently, knowing how faucets worked, but wanting to learn about the shower none the less.

"This is shampoo," Desmond said picking up a bottle of hair product, "It's for your hair and this one is for your body. Cleans you up and makes you smell better. Once you've rinsed off the shampoo and body wash just turn the knobs the opposite direction you did before and you're good to go. I'm pretty sure towels will be under the sinks in the cabinets or in the closet in the rooms."

    The three nodded silently before seeming to catch on that Desmond was suggesting they go do just that and began to leave. Desmond shut the bathroom door behind them and checked for a towel under the sink, which he found, and got undressed. Once he had set the temperature of the shower properly, he quickly got in and washed up. It felt absolutely amazing and relaxing to get clean after not being able to properly shower in over five days. Once he felt clean again, he shut the shower off and got out while wrapping the towel around his waist. He grabbed his bag off the floor and walked back into the bedroom to find Duncan in there dropping some sweat pants and a tank top on the bed.

"The Devil thought you and the others could use some pajamas so she's having me and Dylan lend some of ours to you guys." Duncan said noticing the questioning gaze in his younger brothers gaze.

"Appreciate it." Desmond replied with a smile before dropping his bag on the bed beside the clothes.

"You really do have their names. Never heard of someone who has more than one name having all the names in one place." Duncan said thoughtfully, his eyes on the names on Desmond's chest.

    Desmond unconsciously put one hand over the names as he pulled some extra boxers from his bag. It was strange letting others know about the names after hiding them for so long and it was even stranger to have people see them.

"Is it a bad thing to have them in the same place?" Desmond asked his brows furrowing as he looked at his brother.

"Of course not, just never heard of it. Most of the time the placement of your Soul Mates name on your body signifies how they will be a strength to you in your life. Natalie knows more about them then I do, girl is practically obsessed with learning things, especially anything to do with Soul Mates and the names on our bodies." Duncan replied with a smile, "I think it has to do with the fact she still hasn't gotten hers."

"She doesn't have hers still?" Desmond asked in shock. Natalie had always talked about getting her Soul Mates name when they were kids, always dreaming about what the name would be and where it would be on her body.

"Not that I know of, if she has she has never told anyone." Duncan replied, frowning a bit, "Then again she might tell you if she has or not. We don't ask out of worry we might upset her if she hasn't."

"So you're throwing me under the bus?"

"No I'm saying that she will be more willing to say whether she has it or not to her best friend after he's been gone for almost a decade."

    Desmond rolled his eyes. Duncan was as close to Natalie as he was if not more so since his brother had been here during the nine years of absence. However, he was curious about it. He had no doubt that Natalie would keep silent if she didn't have hers yet, but she would tell him if he asked her. Deciding he'd ask her later, probably some time after dinner, he stared at his brother expectantly.

"What?" Duncan asked confused.

"Leave. I may be gay, but that doesn't mean I'm willing to dress in front of my own brother." Desmond said flatly. Duncan barked out a laugh as he headed for the door.

"Don't worry as your brother I don't want to see any of that anyway!" Duncan called back before sliding the door shut behind him.

    Desmond shook his head and dropped the towel in a laundry basket by the door before slipping into the boxers and sweat pants. He contemplated putting on the black tank top his brother had left, but decided he'd just nap for a bit before dinner and put it on before going to eat. Setting his bag and the shirt on the dresser, Desmond collapsed on the bed with a sigh, burying his head under a soft pillow. After he'd slept off the jet lag he'd spent a little less then twenty-four hours wide awake worrying over coming to South Dakota, now he just wanted to get some sleep before enjoying some time with his brothers and childhood friend. _'Maybe coming back here wasn't such a bad thing after all...'_ Desmond thought to himself as he slipped off into a dreamless nap.

 

 

    Desmond was slowly pulled from his nap as he heard the sound of Dylan calling his name through the door.

"Dinner's ready, so hurry to the kitchen Natalie will be bringing it down in a few minutes." Dylan called before his footsteps walked away. Desmond mumbled inaudibly to himself as he continued to pull his sleepy mind back to the waking world. As he did come back to consciousness he realized there was two heavy weights draped over his torso and fingers tangled in his hair. Instantly, Desmond was wide awake and his eyes snapped open as he tried to sit up.

  
_"Calm habibi."_ Altair's voice instantly calmed him and he blinked his eyes.

    Altair was sitting against the head board of the bed behind Desmond, his fingers running through the younger man's hair. The American then glanced down to find Ezio and Connor sleeping on either side of him, each of them with an arm draped over him while they slept. "When did you all get in here?" Desmond asked softly, looking to the Syrian.

"I think it was only a few moments after you fell asleep. We didn't want to wake you, so those two decided to rest as well. I'm keeping watch." Altair replied calmly, his fingers never stopping their motions nearly putting Desmond back to sleep.

"We're safe here Altair, you don't have to keep watch while we rest that's what Natalie's bar is for. As for resting why didn't they go to their own beds?"

    Desmond was still fighting sleep as Altair smirked at him a bit. Did he say something strange?

"We just wanted to stay with you, _habibi._ " Altair replied. Desmond frowned a bit, but didn't argue his response, that is until he realized he'd asked a pretty stupid question. They were his soul mates it only made sense that they wanted to be in the same bed as him. However, at the same time, he really wished they would stop clinging to him. It was going to make it extremely hard to let them go when they had to go home if they kept giving him as much affection as they currently were. Shaking that thought from his head for now, Desmond looked down at the two beside him and shook them slightly.

    Connor was the first awake, his head snapping up from where it had been resting against Desmond's chest and he blinked sleepily. Ezio came awake more slowly and didn't bother lifting his head from Desmond's arm, instead he simply yawned and pressed closer to the younger man. Neither man fully removed their arms from the younger man though and quickly settled back in beside him.

"Dinner's almost ready you two." Desmond said trying to slip free so he could go put a shirt on. Neither men allowed him to move, making Altair chuckle behind him. Sighing in defeat, Desmond fell back against Altair's legs and stared up at the Syrian, who smirked down at him with amusement.

"They are like dead weights." Desmond muttered, the arms around him tightening slightly as the two men made it clear they heard him.

    After a few more minutes, Connor and Ezio finally sat up allowing Desmond to slip free and off the bed. All three men yawned and stretched where they were. After his muscles relaxed, Desmond went over to the dresser and pulled on the tank top before turning to the others.

"Hope you guys are hungry, because Natalie always makes enough to feed a small army." Desmond said nodding to the door as he headed for it. Altair was the first to catch up with him, closely followed by the other two. He led the way out of the room and over to the kitchen door which was wide open and had the sounds of his brother and Natalie moving around.

    They walked in and he immediately noticed Natalie had changed from normal clothes into a pair of flannel pajama bottoms, a black hoodie and a pair of brightly colored socks on her feet. Her hood was pulled up as she was setting out plates at the table. Dylan was dressed in his own pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt while he wheeled one of the desk chairs from the rec room up to the table, while Duncan was finishing stocking up the kitchen dressed in nothing but a pair of pajama bottoms sitting low on his hips.

"None of you working tonight or something?" Desmond asked, looking at Natalie's attire curiously.

"Nope ma and pa has the bar tonight so I'm free to torture you with my presence all evening." She replied with a grin as she set glasses out while Dylan and Duncan took up some seats. Desmond rolled his eyes and took a seat beside Natalie while Altair, Connor and Ezio took the last three empty seats; Connor seated right beside him followed by Ezio and Altair seated beside Duncan.

    Finally settled Desmond managed to see exactly how much Natalie had made for their small group of seven. She had made a large pot of noodles to go with the giant pot of spaghetti sauce along with a couple loafs of home made garlic bread. There was corn on the cob and what appeared to be some sort of cheesy Italian side dish that Desmond couldn't name and then two or three bottles of what appeared to be sparkling cider (Natalie may run a bar, but she very rarely allowed Alcohol with the meals she made herself).

"Jeez, Nat make any more and we could feed the entirety of the customers in your bar tonight." Desmond joked, receiving a playful punch in the arm.

"Shut up and start serving up some food for yourself Des." She shot back, serving up some noodles before passing it over to him. He grinned at the blonde beside him and did as she instructed allowing silence to fall while they all served up their plates.

    After they were served Natalie wasted no time getting Desmond to introduce the three men at the table with him and quickly went into a tale about what happened after he'd left the farm. Duncan and Dylan often asked questions about any stories he might have for the bars he'd worked at since he was eighteen and Natalie occasionally had to shush them so that Desmond could continue speaking. By the time he got to his time being captured by Abstergo, most of them had finished eating and were picking at the last bit off food on their plates. Natalie was sipping at her glass of sparkling cider and Desmond was taking his last bit of bread as he shrugged.

"And you guys already know about my time at Abstergo at least the gist of it anyway." Desmond said after he swallowed.

"Sounds like you've had quite an adventure for the last nine years little brother." Dylan said with a smirk of amusement.

"Okay since I'm obviously the older brother who doesn't give a shit how much you glare at me and my curiosity can possibly get me killed if I don't indulge it, I gotta ask." Duncan said, looking at Desmond as the younger man raised an eyebrow at him, "How many lovers did you have?"

    Natalie choked as the question made her chuckle while drinking and Desmond stared at his brother wide eyed, all the while Dylan was laughing his head off and patting Natalie's back to help her from choking. Duncan smirked behind his hand clearly amused by all the reactions he was getting by his question and watching his youngest brother while he sputtered.

"W-why the hell would you wanna know that?!" Desmond asked, his cheeks growing hot in embarrassment. He couldn't turn to Natalie for help, since she was still trying not to die beside him, so he quickly glanced over at the three men beside him only to meet curious gazes. Oh, god he hoped they didn't want him to answer as well.

"Do tell, _tesoro._ " Ezio said setting his elbow on the table so he could set his chin in his head while he smirked at the younger man.

"That- I- DAMMIT DUNCAN!" Desmond exclaimed as he chucked a piece of leftover bread at his older brother's head. Duncan easily caught it and bit into the bread, while Desmond tried to make his embarrassment appear to be anger, but failed miserably.

"So are you going to answer, little brother?" Duncan asked, still smirking.

"That's my business and none of yours, you pain in the ass." Desmond shot back, refusing to acknowledge the three men beside him as he crossed his arms.

"Alright then are you a top or bottom then?" Duncan asked.

    Desmond once again sputtered at his brother's questioning while Natalie now joined Dylan in his howling laughter at Desmond's embarrassment.

"That's none of your business either and like I would tell my brother that!" Desmond exclaimed in frustration.

"Well then how about telling us, _habibi_." The sound of Altair's calm voice made the American tense, before glancing down the table at the Syrian.

"Perhaps we should wait for that answer when we are able to get him alone." Connor said, with a slightly teasing smile. Desmond's face grew even hotter as Duncan now joined the other two table occupants in laughter at his brother's expression. He could tell he was gapping at the three men as they all seemed to now be having a silent conversation on how to get the answer out of him. It wasn't until Natalie leaned over and patted his head that he could pull his attention away.

"Don't worry Dessy, you can always run and hide in my room like when we were in High School." Natalie teased, making him slam his forehead against the table in embarrassment. Did he think this was a good idea, he was wrong. This reunion was a horrible, horrible idea and he was now paying the embarrassing price for it.

    However, even as those thoughts crossed his mind, Desmond had no intention of leaving or getting angry at any of them. He'd missed his brothers and Natalie. He'd missed the teasing, the joking, and the way they acted as if they were just a normal little family instead of a bunch of Assassins. He smiled to himself as the others around him laughed at his expense and couldn't help closing his eyes and just listening to the sounds of laughter from the three most important people he'd been forced to leave behind nine years ago. Nope, Desmond wouldn't trade this moment for anything not even to save himself the embarrassment. He'd take it all in stride and enjoy their company without complaint, and he'd do it with a secret smile on his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright pretty sure this isn't going to be nearly as long as the first one kinda had all this typed up already and was splitting it into two chapters instead of making everything I had so far into one giant chapter. I got kudos on the first one though so yay i don't completely suck :D


	3. Chapter 3

Desmond listened to everyone laugh for a few more minutes, all of them slowly sobering up from the fits, while he pulled himself together and lifted his head to give them the best annoyed expression he could muster. Natalie was still snickering at him and his brothers were both smirking. Shaking his head he stood and started grabbing plates from the table to begin clearing. Taking the hint his brothers and Natalie's began helping as well before moving to the counters and sink. Desmond set some of the plates in the sink as Dylan came up beside him. 

"So are you planning to sleep with all three of them, or one at a time?" Dylan asked quietly so the three at the table wouldn't hear. 

Desmond blushed and spluttered at his question while Duncan burst out laughing and Natalie giggled behind her hands. 

"That's none of your business!" Desmond shot back quietly. Dylan smirked and was about to say something else, when they heard Natalie cough and snap her fingers. All three brothers immediately snapped to attention and turned to look at her expectantly. 

"Alright boys, Duncan I want you putting away, Dylan and Desmond I want you two drying, I'll actually wash the dishes." Natalie commanded smirking slightly. The brothers gave a mock salute and moved to their stations while Natalie turned the water on so she could start scrubbing dishes. 

There was silence for a few moments while Natalie started passing washed dishes to them, but after a few moments Duncan decided to speak up again. 

"Okay, being completely serious now, what are you planning to do about the three of them?" Duncan asked quietly, shooting his gaze behind them at the table. Desmond looked over his shoulder slightly as he dried a plate to see that the three men were all talking quietly to each other. He wasn't sure if he should be concerned about that or not, but quickly focused again as he passed the dried plate to his brother. 

"What do you mean? We're going to find a way to send them home." Desmond replied, ignoring the ache that started in his chest. He didn't want them to be sent back, but they had to whether any of them wanted it or not. 

"That's it?" Dylan asked. 

"Yeah, why do you sound so surprised? Two of them are confirmed historically important figure heads to the assassin order, and I'm sure Connor plays an important part in his own time as an Assassin." Desmond replied flatly continuing to dry any dishes handed to him. 

"But Des, they're your soul mates." Duncan argued weakly. 

"Boys drop it." Natalie said sharply, instantly shutting them up. Desmond gave her a weak smile which she returned. Leave it to his best friend to know exactly how sensitive that topic was for him, even after nine years she could read him like an open book. 

They spent the rest of the time doing the dishes in silence, his brothers sending him glances that said they clearly wanted to ask further about the last topic, but stayed silent because of Natalie's constant pointed glances. Desmond focused on drying, occasionally glancing back at the three still at the table, smiling every time when he'd see them talking quietly and appearing completely relaxed. 

 

Desmond finished drying the last plate and handed it to Duncan to put it away. He handed his towel to Natalie so that she could dry off her hands while his brothers were muttering about something behind him. Leaning forward Natalie stood on her tip toes slightly to speak to him as she opened her mouth to speak. 

"You okay? I could tell they were touching on a touchy topic a little while ago." She asked, her voice low and filled with concern. 

"Yeah, I'm fine don't worry about me." He replied. 

"Too late for that, been worrying for a little less then eighteen years of my life, I probably ain't gonna stop now." Natalie shot back with a snort. Desmond chuckled at her words and reached out to run his hand through her hair. She smiled up at him and took his hand so she could kiss the scared knuckles before moving in and wrapping her slender arms around his waist. She was practically dwarfed in the overly large hoodie she wore, but to Desmond it only made her even more adorable. 

He loved Natalie, he did. Not in the way many had thought when they were growing up on the farm, but he did love her. She was his best friend and many a time had claimed her as his unofficial soul mate. No he didn't carry her name on his skin like he did with the three Assassin's at the table, but she was as important to him as they were. He didn't need to carry her name to know that she was meant to be his best friend or that he would be lost and miserable if she didn't exist in this world. Her name was written in his heart from the moment she smiled at him during training when they were eight. 

Slowly releasing Natalie from the hug, he actually jumped when he felt a pair of arms replace hers. Desmond glanced over his shoulder to find Ezio had approached and was smiling over his shoulder at Natalie menacingly. Bless Natalie to death, even knowing who the man was she didn't flinch and simply returned the smile with one of her own. 

"Oh trust me pretty boy, if I wanted him I could have him. I'm the only one he's straight for." Natalie replied teasingly, giggling as Ezio frowned at her response, "So don't think you're tall stature and warning smiles are going to stop me from hugging or holding my best friend." 

Desmond laughed at her response while Ezio snorted and tugged the younger man closer to him. Appearing to not like Natalie's words any more then the Italian both Connor and Altair came over as well and grabbed Desmond's arms. The younger man found himself suddenly being dragged out of the kitchen while his brothers and Natalie laughed. 

"You four have fun!" Duncan called, making Desmond's face heat up while he attempted to flip him off. He was dragged out of the kitchen and down the hall a ways to the bedroom he'd claimed for himself, though he was pretty sure the other three would be staying here in the evenings as well. Now that he thought about it, he had to stop that now before he let it get out of hand. He was already too attached to them, he couldn't risk getting used to having them with him even while he slept. 

That thought was quickly squashed as he was dragged into the room and Altair turned to lock the door behind them. He turned to argue that action and tell them he would be sleeping alone, but that was cut off before he could begin as Connor quickly dragged him to the bed and practically tossed him on it. 

"Wow, hey wait a minute!" Desmond exclaimed as Ezio was the first to crawl on the bed with him. All three of them had a look in their eyes that made Desmond squirm slightly. 

"What's the matter tesoro?" Ezio asked, with a slight chuckle, "You aren't nervous are you?" 

"No, but that doesn't mean I should let any of you throw me around like a rag doll." Desmond replied, glaring at the Italian man for a moment, before snapping his glare to the Native that had thrown him. Connor appeared indifferent to his glare and simply got onto the bed as well. 

Desmond grumbled at their lack of care towards his irritation. He wasn't somebody who enjoyed being tossed around, Abstergo had done that shit and he wouldn't sit back and take that kind of treatment from anyone. 

"Is something the matter habibi?" Altair asked, dragging the younger man's glare to him. The Syrian had moved over near the edge of the bed, but had yet to get on it yet. He appeared to be the only one who was actually concerned by Desmond's irritation and was watching him carefully. 

"No, just don't like being thrown around is all." Desmond said with a sigh, dropping his glare and scratching the back of his head. Connor wrapped an arm around him and buried his face against Desmond's shoulder as, what the younger man assumed was, a sort of apology for having thrown him. 

Desmond sighed at the action and leaned his head against Connor's to show he wasn't angry. Damn, he hated this. No matter how hard he tried to keep his heart as far from them as he could, they just did shit like this and suddenly he couldn't help but want to reach out for them. 

"Perhaps we should get some rest, I am sure that we will have to deal with others such as your father tomorrow." Altair suggested, getting Desmond to glance up at him. The Syrian still hadn't got on the bed like the other two, but once the Italian and Native had dragged the youngest male under the covers of the bed, Altair joined them by laying on the other side of Ezio and staying closest to the edge. Surprised that by the sudden change in their attitude, Desmond barely had a chance to settle before two arms from the men on either side of him wrapped around his waist and both pressed themselves against him. Sighing, Desmond closed his eyes and barely registered a third hand that had tangled itself in his hair as he drifted to sleep. 

 

 

Desmond slowly woke and grumbled. He didn't want to wake up just yet, instead he wriggled closer to the warmth beside him in an attempt to try and keep that safe, warm feeling he'd had while asleep. A chuckle reached his ears and the warmth he'd pressed against vibrated with the sound, making Desmond crack an eye open to stare up at Altair. The Syrian was watching him with a small amused smile on his face. 

"Good morning, habibi." Altair said. Desmond ignored him and closed his eye again before rolling to face away from him. Though with an arm wrapped under him from the man, he didn't actually get away from him. 

Altair fell silent as Desmond continued to teeter between the dream and waking world. Desmond was thankful for that and just enjoyed the feeling of the Syrian laying beside him with a slight smile on his face. He eventually couldn't stay in the bed anymore and fully pulled himself awake by sitting up in bed. It was then that he noticed Ezio and Connor were both gone, making Desmond look to the Syrian beside him with a questioning gaze. 

"They went to train for the morning." Altair said simply. Desmond nodded and got off the bed to get dressed. He hesitated when he felt eyes on him and glanced over his shoulder to find Altair watching him intently. 

"Shouldn't you be off training too?" Desmond asked as a subtle hint. 

Altair either chose to ignore the hint or didn't get it because he just shrugged as he watched the younger man intently. 

"I can afford to miss a day of training." He replied simply. Desmond scowled at him slightly, before turning back to his bag. 

"Well I'm going to spend some time catching up with Natalie this morning, so you can go join the other two." Desmond hinted again. This time he got no response and turned once more to find Altair still staring at him. 

"Dammit Altair, I'm gonna change so get out!" Desmond demanded crossing his arms as he turned to face the Syrian completely. 

After a moment of silence, Altair got up from the bed, but instead of heading for the door like Desmond had expected the Syrian walked towards him slowly. Desmond watched him suspiciously as he stopped just before him. 

"You sound nervous again, habibi." Altair said quietly, making Desmond frown. 

"I'm not nervous, I just enjoy my privacy. It's a luxury I haven't had much of for the last three months." Desmond replied. Altair smirked at him for a moment before taking his face in his hands. Desmond's face immediately lit up bright red and only became worse as Altair kissed his forehead before heading out of the room. Desmond stood there for a few moments still fighting down the blush as well as the overwhelming feeling of butterflies in his stomach. 'Dammit at this rate, it will kill me to send them home.' Desmond thought with a depressed sigh. 

He swiftly got dressed and headed out to the kitchen. He was unsurprised to find Natalie there cooking away while she hummed a tune he didn't recognize. She was dressed in a pair of dark blue jeans with a pair of black boots and a purple plaid button up shirt. Her long blonde hair was pinned up messily on her head with a clip that revealed some black writing that was just under the collar of her shirt on her back. 

"Good morning Dessy, how'd you sleep?" Natalie asked without turning to look at him. 

"Morning. I slept great, what about you?" He asked taking a seat at the table. 

"I slept great, though I'm sure you slept much better surrounded by three wonderfully muscled men." She replied teasingly, making him blush. 

"Oh hush your mouth, it's too early for your teasing." Desmond shot back, making the blonde imp giggle. 

Desmond grumbled as he sat at the table, setting his arms on the table and his chin on his arms. He watched Natalie silently for a few minutes trying to figure out how to word what he'd wanted to talk to her about. 

"Alright Desmond, what is it you want to ask me?" Natalie asked suddenly, pulling Desmond from his thoughts. She hadn't looked away from her cooking, but that didn't surprise him. His best friend had figured out a way to pretty much sense his moods a long time ago and that hadn't changed in the last nine years apparently. 

"What makes you think I wanna ask something, maybe I'm waiting for you to start asking questions." Desmond replied. She may be able to read him like an open book, but that didn't mean he didn't still need time to gather his thoughts. 

"Really Desmond? I can practically feel your eyes drilling curious holes into the back of my head. Now what is it?" She replied flatly, glancing over her shoulder at him. 

He sighed at her response and buried his face in his arms for a moment, appreciating the silence Natalie gifted him with to gather himself. 

"Alright fine, I need to ask about my names." Desmond said picking his head up. 

"What do you need to know?" Natalie asked, setting the pan she had finished using aside and moving a few plates full of pancakes, bacon, hash browns and a large bowl of oatmeal to the table. She turned back to the counters to begin making some fresh orange juice while she waited for his response. 

"Well, what can the placement of a name mean for starters?" He asked. 

"Well it depends on where it's placed on your body. If it's over your heart it is often seen as your Soul Mate will protect you as well as make you feel safe and loved, if it's on your arms it can be a sense of strength or someone to pull you up when you are down, back can mean they are one you can trust no matter the situation or your past and so on." She replied. 

"Alright and what if someone has multiple in the same place?" He asked cautiously. 

Natalie paused her movements at his question and glanced back at him. 

"Are yours all in the same place?" She asked with a curious tone. 

"Yes..." He replied slowly. 

"Well that is rare, then again having two names is rare and three is almost completely unheard of, but having all three in the same exact place is something I've never read about. However, going off someone having two names and having them in the same place I'd say it means you need triple the support on wherever it is placed. Tell me where are they located?" 

"Right here, over my heart." Desmond said, placing his hand over his chest where he knew the names to be. 

"Oh well that is actually understandable." Natalie muttered thoughtfully. 

Desmond gave her a curious expression and she giggled softly when she turned to put the pitcher of orange juice on the table. 

"I don't mean anything bad by it, I just mean that it makes sense for them to be over your heart. You may have had me and your brother's to love you growing up, but you never truly felt the love most children get from their parents. Bill was everything but a father most days and your mother was off on missions the moment you and the boys were old enough to take care of each other." Natalie explained. 

"So why does that explain why my Soul Mates names are over my heart?" Desmond asked, slightly annoyed by the reminder of his parentless childhood. 

"Well you can stand on your own when you are down and you don't need someone to have your back since you have me and your brothers, but what your soul recognizes that you need is someone who can love and protect your heart in a way that we can't. That's where your Soul Mate, or in your case Mates, come in. Their names are over your heart because they are what your soul needs. They will love and protect you in the way that you need." She replied with a smile, "I guess you could say they complete you, just like your name on their body completes what they need." 

Desmond rolled his eyes slightly at her cheesy line, but at the same time knew it made sense. He was just about to finally ask if she had ever received her name when the door to the kitchen opened and his brothers and his three Soul Mates walked in. 

"Good morning, little brother!" Duncan exclaimed. All five men were covered in sweat and dressed in sweats and tank tops. This led Desmond to believe that his brothers had probably joined the three others in morning training. 

"Morning, how'd training go?" Desmond replied, receiving a grin from both his brothers. 

"We'll give your boys this Des, they are skilled and we could learn a helluva lot from them." Dylan replied as he sat down at the table. 

"Ah, Dylan William Miles you get your ass up from that chair and go wash up before touching any of that food!" Natalie snapped from where she had moved to grab the milk. 

Dylan froze in mid motion of reaching for a piece of bacon. He made no move to argue simply shot to his feet and scurried from the room like a child who'd just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Duncan was laughing until a spoon hit him in the back of the head. 

"That goes for you too Duncan. All of you sweaty men need to go wash up other wise you are going to have to deal with me." She ordered glaring at all of them. Desmond was holding back his laughter as he saw all four of the other men's eyes go wide before swiftly leaving the kitchen to do as told. 

"I swear, over eighteen years of knowing each other and both your brothers still haven't figured out that I expect them to clean up before eating." Natalie grumbled as she set the milk on the table along side a tub of butter, a couple jars of jelly, a container of sugar and a bottle of honey. 

Desmond laughed at her huffing and got up to wash his hands at the sink before returning the table. By the time Natalie had finished setting the table all the men had returned and took seats at the table. Ezio took up the seat to the left of Desmond followed by Altair and then Connor. It seemed all three had come to the understanding that Natalie was not to be trifled with and left the seat to the right of Desmond open for her while his brothers sat in the seats to the right of hers. 

 

Breakfast went by with slight conversation, but mostly it was just more questions that Desmond's brothers and Natalie wanted to ask the three Assassins. Natalie seemed mostly focused on Altair, since her family line could be traced back to Masyaf, and the Grandmaster was more then happy to answer her curiosity. Desmond was extremely happy to find that Altair seemed to be warming up to his best friend. Though he had lived through far more of Ezio's life then the Syrian's, Desmond had always felt closer to Altair when he'd been going through his memories. 

Not only had he had a far better synch rate with him, but Desmond had watched the Syrian grow in a far different way then he did with Ezio. He got to watch Altair go from being a overly proud and reckless man who believed he knew better then his fellow assassin's to a man who had been humbled and bettered by the punishment of his title being stripped. He got to watch his soul mate grow and change into an honorable and respectable man that he was so very proud to carry the name of, he'd even felt like Altair had been cursed having to carry the name of a runaway novice. 

Desmond was suddenly pulled from his musings when a loud blaring alarm interrupted all of them. Natalie was on her feet instantly followed closely by the three time-travelers. 

"What is that Nat?" Desmond asked, standing up as his brothers remained seated. "It's something I set up if someone not permitted into the Catacombs ever tried to open one of the entrances. It looks like someone not in my system decided to press their luck." Natalie growled. 

"I'll give you three guesses as to who it is." Dylan said. 

"Here's a hint, his name starts with W and ends with illiam." Duncan spat out, finally standing up as Natalie moved to leave the kitchen. 

"Dad?" Desmond stated in surprise, moving to follow Natalie out of the kitchen. 

"He probably heard that you were staying with me and headed over this morning to confront you." Natalie said as all the men followed the tiny blonde towards the stairs, "You don't have to come up Desmond, I'll get him out of here if you'd like." 

Desmond shook his head and scowled. No way in hell was he just going to stay down here and hide like a frightened child. That was his father up there and dammit he was going to face the bastard if it was the last thing he did. 

"No, I'm not sixteen any more Nat, it's time I stopped running from him." Desmond stated. Natalie nodded and continued leading the way as she headed up the spiral stair case. Desmond was close behind her not paying attention to who followed behind him. They reached the top step swiftly and Natalie wasted no time putting her hand against a hand print scanner to open the door. 

Natalie stormed out of the door pushing back the tall man who had been trying to open the entrance. Desmond stepped out more slowly allowing Natalie to push the gray haired man out of her office and out to the bar. He was closely followed by Connor and Ezio flanking him on either side, while he felt the presence of Altair just behind him. Desmond could hear Natalie shouting obscenities in the other room and decided to take the time she was giving him to talk to his three Assassins. 

"Alright, listen up, no matter what he says don't attack him. It's what he wants. If you attack him, he knows he's getting to you and will use whatever set you off over and over again until he finds something better." Desmond explained quickly watching as his brothers slipped past them to go into the bar. To back Natalie up no doubt, not that the little devil needed back up. 

"We are skilled Assassin's tesoro, I am sure we will be able to keep our composure." Ezio replied with a slight smirk. 

"We'll see." Desmond muttered before stepping towards the door. 

He stepped out into the bar to see Natalie had practically cornered the man while she yelled. Looking at the older man he appeared to be in his late forties to early fifties, with a graying beard and a pair of light hazel eyes. Looking at him, it would be impossible to guess that this man was related to Desmond or his brothers. They looked nothing like him and they sure as hell didn't look like they could be his kids. 

As Desmond came to a stop next to the bar counter, William noticed him and practically shoved Natalie out of his way to stalk towards his youngest son. Duncan easily caught the tiny blonde, while the three time-travelers took up defensive stances around Desmond. Their defensive appearances made William falter in his strides for a moment, before he focused on just scowling at Desmond instead. He stopped a few feet away from Desmond and crossed his arms. 

"You come home after all this time and can't even be bothered to come meet your own father?" William demanded. 

"I'm sorry didn't realize I was still a child and needed to answer to the beck and call of my father every time he throws a temper tantrum over something ridiculous." Desmond replied flatly. 

"If not the call of your father then you should answer to the call of the Mentor of the Brotherhood." William said angrily. 

"After seeing the lives of two Master Assassin's who became the Mentor's of the Brotherhood, I have found that you using that as a way of trying to control me has lost all intimidation behind it. I mean in comparison you are a pretty pathetic head of the assassins." Desmond shot back, receiving a glare from William. 

William may think he knows how to hit Desmond in his weak points, but the youngest son has thicker skin then he did when he was sixteen. His father on the other hand has such a huge ego and so much pride about being the Mentor that his title is an easy target that Desmond can throw his verbal knives at. 

"What would you know about being a Mentor, boy? You are nothing more than a runaway novice who is lucky that I have decided to allow you back into the brotherhood." William growled out. 

"Even if you didn't want me back just so you could go through our Ancestors pasts to find the Pieces of Eden, you would drag me back into the Brotherhood simply so you could control me. And I'm only here because I have come to respect what Altair and Ezio worked so hard to rebuild during their own times." Desmond replied, feeling the three men around him shift closer at his last comment. 

"Oh yes you are so honorable. I must say I feel sorry for the three who have to carry the name of a disgrace like you and they must feel so ashamed to have some runaway novice carry their names." William said with a smirk. 

Before Desmond could say anything to the other three, Connor stepped forward and punched his father straight in the jaw. His brothers gasped slightly, while Natalie cheered in appreciation for Connor's actions. 

"Say what you will about us, but don't you ever insult Desmond or us in such a way. We are proud to call him ours and we are proud to know he carries our names with a humble pride not many have." Connor stated angrily as he glared down at where William had landed on the floor. 

"Even if he were to be the son of a Templar or a Templar himself, we would be proud to call him ours." Ezio added, making Desmond glance at him in shock. Ezio had a pretty good reason to despise Templars, to have him say something like that made a warm feeling spread through Desmond's chest. 

William slowly stood from his place on the floor to glare at Connor. Desmond felt his hackles immediately rise at the glare. He was fine with his father's anger being aimed at him, but if that man made a single move towards Connor, he didn't care if the Native could take care of himself, Desmond would bring out a whole new level of anger that his father had never seen from him before. 

"And who the hell are you?" William demanded angrily, standing tall to face off against the Mohawk. Not that it did much good, Connor was tall and built appearing more like a bear then a man when he stood in such an intimidating stature. 

"Connor Kenway. And I don't care if you are the Mentor of the current Brotherhood, I will put you in the ground if you insult Desmond again." Connor replied with a growl, making William take a step back in surprise. 

"How could Desmond receive the names of not one, but three famous Assassin figure heads?" William muttered, grabbing Desmond's attention. 

"What do you mean?" Duncan asked curiously, before his youngest brother could. 

The sudden sound of Natalie snapping her fingers had everyone, except William and Connor, glancing at her. 

"I thought I recognized that name last night, but now I'm sure. Connor Kenway is the name of the Native American Assassin who literally built the Assassin Brotherhood here in America. He was the son of Haytham Kenway, A high ranking Templar of the Templar Order, and grandson to the Pirate-Assassin Edward Kenway. Oh I have so many questions for you when we are done here!" Natalie explained excitedly, her eyes practically sparkling as she stared at Connor. 

"So Connor is another major historical figure head in the Assassin's history?" Desmond asked quietly. He tried to tell himself that his heart hadn't just shattered into a million pieces at the revelation. He knew there was a good possibility of Connor being important to the past, but he had secretly been hoping that maybe, just maybe, he could keep at least one of his Soul Mates with him. Instead, just like Altair and Ezio, Connor literally paves the way for the Brotherhood in the past. 

"Yep and in fact I believe you boys are direct descendants of him." Natalie replied, excitedly. 

Just like that Desmond's heart shattered all over again. Not only were all three of his Soul Mates important to history, but if he didn't send all of them home he and his brothers would never exist. Seeming to notice what was going through their little brother's mind, Duncan and Dylan pinched and poked Natalie's arms respectively making the young woman flinch in pain before glaring at them. She was about to yell at them, when William shifted grabbing all their attention again. 

"This is quite amusing. Not only do you fail as an Assassin Desmond, but you can't even get a Soul Mate you can keep by your side." William said with a smirk. Apparently the older man hadn't learned from his earlier mistake of insulting Desmond, because he once again received a punch to the jaw from Connor. 

Desmond barely heard William curse at the Native for his actions, as he turned away and began walking back to the Catacomb entrance. Seeming to understand that this was done, Natalie ordered Duncan and Dylan to throw their father out of her bar before she decided to gut him herself. Desmond blocked it all out, leaving the others behind so he could go to his room and think for a bit. His thoughts kept going back to the last thing his father said. He was right. Desmond was a failure as an Assassin, but what really hurt was that his father was right about his Soul Mates. He couldn't keep them by his side and he felt ashamed for them that they were forced to carry his name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh how I tried to wait for my beta reader to do the betaing, but I got too excited to post this so here it is :P I may post an edit after its been betaed


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry it took so fucking long guys omgg it was beyond ridiculous how long it took me. Between the move and the new job it took way longer than it should and I'm so sorry for that.

Natalie stared at the locked door before her with a concerned gaze. Desmond had locked himself in his room in the catacombs and had refused to answer when anyone knocked. She knew what his father had said had struck a cord for him, but it concerned her greatly to see her best friend so greatly affected by his father. Even as a teen he had been angered by the things William would say to him not upset by them. The fact that he had been able to upset Desmond so greatly that he would even ignore her, angered and worried Natalie. It had been hours since William's visit and Desmond had skipped lunch with everyone, which in turn made her three time travelling residents begin to worry for the younger man as well. 

Sighing, Natalie closed her eyes and leaned against the wall, trying to think of a way to convince her friend to come out of his room or at least let her in. The sudden feeling of something curling around her leg had her eyes snapping open and she looked down to find a fluffy cat sitting at her feet staring up at her with a pair of bright blue eyes. It's fur was mostly white all over it's body, except for the tip of its ears and its face which were a silvery grey color. 

"Boris, I thought I locked you up in the room. Silly kitty, you can't be roaming around alone down here." Natalie cooed squatting down to pet the cat behind its ears. Boris was a Birman that Natalie had found on one of her missions. He had only been a kitten when Natalie had found him in an alley way she had taken cover in. She had instantly fallen in love with the tiny fumbling fuzz ball and had hidden him away in her hoodie pocket. 

Boris meowed at her and rubbed his face against hers, making her laugh softly. She quickly scooped up her cat and stood up once more to stare at the door. 

"What should I do Boris? He won't let anyone in and he won't talk to us when we try to speak with him." Natalie said quietly. She didn't expect a response from her cat, but she often found if she could verbally hash out an issue then she could better find a solution. And well, Boris was a great listener. 

"He's upset over the things his father said. I can understand that it must be hard for him, after all his ancestors are important figure heads from the past." 

Just like that it hit her. Desmond's Soul Mates were major figure heads, ones they had to find a way to send back to their own times. What his dad had said in the end hadn't just struck a cord for Desmond, it had stabbed him straight through the heart and left him to patch up the hole. Frowning, Natalie tried to think of a way to comfort him. She knew of one way, which would be finding a reason for why his three boys would have to stay. That would be her top priority. She would have to do some research and she would need the apple as well, with Desmond's permission of course to use it. Next she could do something that might help him see a bright side to all this until she did find a solution. For now, she had to get in and speak with Desmond. 

Giving herself a firm nod as if to confirm to herself what she was about to do, she set Boris on the ground and reached up into her hair to pull a hair pin from it. She bent and twisted the pin a bit before walking up to the locked door and slipping it into the lock. She twisted and pushed at it a bit until she heard that familiar and welcome click and swiftly slid the door open. Desmond was sitting on the bed, staring at her wide eyed as she slipped in with a cat just ahead of her. 

"We gotta talk Dessy." She said simply, shutting and relocking the door behind her. 

"There's nothing to talk about Nat." Desmond replied, his face returning to a somber expression. 

"Stop that right now." She said sternly, walking up and standing in front of him, "Stop feeling sorry for yourself and acting like this is the end of the world." 

"What would you know Nat, you will probably never have to worry about having to give up your soul mate just for the sake of existing in the first place." 

Desmond's tone had turned angry and he glared up at Natalie, but that didn't deter her. She simply glared down at him, before sighing and making her final decision. 

"Jacob Frye and Shay Cormac." She said simply. 

"What?" Desmond said, a confused expression crossing his face as he stared at her. 

"My names, Jacob Frye and Shay Cormac. Jacob Frye was an assassin during the Industrial Age in London. He was a brilliant Assassin along side his twin Evie." Natalie explained, sitting on the edge of the bed with a sad sigh, "Shay Cormac was an Assassin turned Templar during Connor's time. Not much is known about him other than that he betrayed the Brotherhood and joined the Templars." 

"But how can that be, how can you have the names of people who are long passed. How do you even know these men from the past are your soul mates Nat?" Desmond asked, seeming to find ways to arguing the point she was trying to make. 

"The same way you knew Altair and Ezio were yours when you went through their memories. You know I'm a history buff when it comes to the Assassin's history. The moment I read about Jacob, I knew in my heart that he was the one who's name was printed upon my skin. Same goes for Shay." She replied. 

"How long have you had them Nat?" 

"I think I was twelve when they appeared for the first time. Dad was just getting into teaching me about the Assassin orders around the world when he came to Jacob. I heard Shay's later when I started doing more research on the American Colonial Assassins. But when I learned about how Shay became a Templar I knew I could never reveal the names. I would never disgrace one of them by keeping only one of them a secret and yet I was afraid of the ridicule I would receive if I were to reveal Shay's name to anyone." 

Natalie stared at the ground where Boris sat at her feet staring at her with his blue eyes. Those blue eyes that seemed to be so intelligent and spoke more words then any human probably ever could. 

"What are you trying to say Nat?" Desmond asked quietly. 

"I'm trying to say that you should be grateful for the gift you've been given considering you are someone who has the names of men from the past. You have gotten to meet not just one, but all three of them. I promise I'm going to find a way for you to keep your boys if it's the last thing I do, but in case I can't you need to understand how lucky you are Des. You got to meet them, where as I will never get to meet mine." Natalie replied, before raising her hand to stop his next words, "And I'm not saying this to make you feel sorry for me or to guilt you into getting over this because the thought of giving up my soul mates if I ever got to meet them kills me, knowing you are going through that exact issue feels the same way. I told you this so that you can understand what a gift you have Desmond. You should enjoy it not dwell on it." 

"Nat... I'm sorry." Desmond said, sorrowfully. 

Natalie smiled at the young man beside her. She knew he'd feel sorry for her anyway, but she couldn't help that. She just hoped her words would help him to enjoy what a blessing he had been given. 

"Forget it. Now I also came in here to ask you something." Natalie said pulling her legs on the bed to face him. 

"What is it?" 

"I need to borrow the Apple. From what you told me, it is what brought those three here so maybe if I can analyze it a bit I can figure out why it sent them here and if there's a possibility in them getting to stay." 

"I don't know Nat, the Apple is powerful and if your mind isn't strong enough it can drive you mad." 

"Then help me. This is so you can keep your boys, but I need the apple to help me figure out a way for that to happen. You know me, Desmond if I start getting to obsessed I give you full permission to let you kick my ass." 

Natalie waited patiently for his response as Desmond took on a thoughtful expression. She knew if she was gonna figure out a way to help Des keep his boys, she would need to start with the Apple. 

"Fine, but you are to only use it when I'm around. I think I'm the only one who can control it properly without losing myself to it." Desmond said finally. Natalie nodded eagerly and rolled herself off the bed, making Boris jump away and hiss in surprise. 

"The sooner we get started the better. Do you have it here or did you hide it?" Natalie inquired. 

"It's in my bag." 

"Good grab it and let's go, we're going to my library." 

Desmond smiled slightly as she scooped up her cat once more and headed for the door. She waited by it as he grabbed his bag and reached her. 

"What's with the fuzz ball anyway, Nat?" Desmond asked curiously. Boris was staring at him with curious eyes, sniffing at Desmond's hand when he held it out before pressing his face against his palm. 

"This is Boris. Found him on one of my missions a couple years back and couldn't say no to him. Of course, he was just a tiny little ball of fluff back then." Natalie replied, smiling as her cat quickly turned his affections towards her when she said his name. Desmond chuckled as the cat rubbed his head under Natalie's chin. 

"Anyway that's a story for another day. Let's go." 

With that said, Natalie unlocked his door and threw it open before swiftly leading the way out of that hall way and back towards the stairs. Just before reaching the stairs she turned down the hallway just next to them. She swiftly moved to one door way which was slightly opened and shut it completely before continuing past it to another door. Opening that one she revealed a huge library that seemed to take up the space of three of bedrooms, with floor to ceiling scripts, books and scrolls. 

"What do you do, keep the whole history of the assassins down here?" Desmond asked, staring in awe at what he was seeing. 

"Well duh. You know my obsession with the Brotherhood's history. Of course, every single thing down here is in codes only I can crack, even the old scrolls and scripts. Why do you think I learned some dead languages. This way if anyone ever did get into my catacombs they would never be able to read any of the items here." Natalie replied proudly. 

She had collected every single item in her library whether from missions or simply by claiming them from the Brotherhood's archives. She had even transferred a lot of the older stuff into her own code before swiftly removing them from the library and hiding them away. Though a lot remained due to how few people could read the language anymore, she still took no risk on keeping anything in her library that wasn't hidden away in a secret code of some sort. One of her Soul Mates may have been an Assassin turned Templar, but that did not mean she was gonna give the Templar Order an opportunity to get Brotherhood secrets. She was a dedicated Assassin and though she loved Shay no matter what decision he made in life, she would not assist the Templars in anyway. In fact she had every intention of making their lives very difficult for as long as she remained an Assassin. 

Focusing on the task at hand, Natalie moved to one of the large tables she kept in the room and set Boris on it. 

"Shut the door and bring the Apple over." Natalie instructed, moving to a shelf to grab a few books she might need. She heard Desmond slide the door shut and lock it before his footsteps made their way to the table. She returned to the table just as Desmond pulled the Apple from his bag and set it on the table. Natalie stared at the golden sphere in awe and curiosity, pushing away Boris unconsciously when the feline went to bat at the object. 

"Bad kitty, don't touch." Natalie said absently. She swiftly turned to the books she'd set down and flipped them open to a few pages. The three she'd grabbed had a few pages about different Assassins, such as Altair and Ezio, who had had contact with Pieces of Eden. This being Ezio's apple, she had one of the books open to listings of those who had been in contact with it in Italy. 

"Alright tell me, Des, what exactly happened when your boys showed up?" Natalie asked, looking to her best friend. 

Desmond glanced at her before turning his expression thoughtful as he remembered what happened. 

"Not much to tell. I mean we had just gotten into the vault and I picked up the Apple. Next thing I know there's this bright flash of light and I'm being tackled by Altair." Desmond replied, focusing back on her. 

"Interesting. So it activated on its own without any orders." Natalie said thoughtfully, flipping through one of the books. 

"What are you thinking Natalie?" Des asked, leaning over to try and read her books. 

"I'm not sure yet, but I don't think the Apple has the power to simply pluck someone from a different time. Any pages I have on them doesn't mention such a power. However, that doesn't mean it doesn't have the power to mess with fate." Natalie replied, before pointing at it while looking at him, "Mind if I pick it up and examine it?" 

Desmond shook his head and she immediately reached out to pick it up in her hand. The moment she touched it a light exploded in the room, making both of them cry out in surprise and sending Boris hissing and spitting off the table. Natalie rubbed at her eyes as the light behind her eyes faded and she swiftly opened them to see if anything happened to Desmond. 

"Des, you okay?" She asked, seeing her friend rubbing at his eyes as well. 

"Yeah, the Apple still here?" He replied, blinking his eyes finally. She glanced to the table and hummed an affirmative as she saw the golden object still sitting on the table. It was then that she heard Boris growling on the other side of the table, making the blonde move to go calm her feline. 

"It's okay now Boris, no need to be-" 

Natalie cut herself off as she saw two men slowly rising from the ground on the other side of the table. Pausing only for a moment, she swiftly released her hidden blade and vaulted over the table to tackle the closest man. The man grunted in surprise and Natalie swiftly pinned him before pressing her blade to his neck, making him tense up. 

"Who are you and how the hell did you get into my Sanctuary!" She demanded, as she heard Desmond scuffling with the second man a little behind her. From the sounds of it he wasn't having any issues taking them down and she had nothing to worry about. The man pinned under her had what appeared to be shoulder length black hair pinned back in a ponytail by a piece of string with a pair of dark eyes that stared up at her in surprise and confusion. Over his right eye was a scar slanting across it yet the eye itself was completely unharmed. His attire was strange and appeared to be similar to that of old time colonial attire. 

"Where am I and who are you?" The man asked in a thick Irish accent that sent a shiver down Natalie's spine. She'd always been a girl for accents. 

Shaking herself mentally to clear that thought away she glared down at the man and pressed her blade closer to his neck. 

"I asked first intruder! Now answer me! Who are you and how did you get into my Sanctuary!?" Natalie demanded angrily. The man beneath her didn't respond, instead he swiftly grabbed her wrist and flipped them so she was pinned beneath him instead. 

"Natalie!" Desmond's shout made the man above her freeze as he went to reach for a weapon. It gave Natalie just the opening she needed. Swiftly bringing her feet up to press against his stomach, she shoved with all her might and threw the man away from her and onto the hard wooden table. She flipped to her feet, before leaping onto the man once more, trapping his arms under her legs as she straddled him and pressed her blade against his neck once more. 

"I will only ask once more. Who are you and how did you get into my Sanctuary!?" Natalie demanded angrily, drawing blood as she slightly cut into the man's neck. 

"Shay Cormac." 

Natalie tensed up at the name and stared down at him with wide eyes. She must have heard him wrong, there is no way he just said what she thought he said. 

"What did you say?" She whispered. 

"My name is Shay Cormac and I have no idea how I got here. Now." The man replied, before bucking up. He managed to flip Natalie over while she was too shocked by his response to react and she swiftly found herself beneath him once more, her back pressing into the hard table. 

"Mind answering my own questions?" He asked as Natalie stared up at him still too shocked to speak. The man above her stared down at her expectantly, but beyond holding down her arms by her head made no move to draw any weapons. 

Suddenly Desmond came barreling over and tackled the man off her, snapping the blonde from her shocked state. Grinding her teeth, she flipped to her feet once again. She swiftly turned to help Desmond only to have an arm come around and wrap around her neck. 

"I'm afraid I must agree with Shay there, mind answering our questions now gorgeous." The second man spoke in a thick British accent. Finally Natalie's anger snapped and reaching up to grab the second man's arm, she snapped her head back into his face and brought one of her elbows back into his rib cage. The man grunted and released her, giving her the opportunity to spin around and kick him straight in the gut. "That's it! This is my Sanctuary! My home and if you two don't sit the fuck down and let me figure out this situation I swear I will do far worse then gut you!" Natalie shouted, making all three men in the room tense up in surprise. 

Desmond instantly straightened from where he'd been trying to pin Shay and stood at a soldier like attention. Natalie ignored him, quickly flicking her gaze between her two intruders. Neither seemed to happy about being ordered around, but swiftly stood and took a seat at the table anyway. The blonde glared at both of them and looked to Desmond. 

"Are you hurt, Des?" She asked, moving over and scooping the Apple off the table. She didn't want either men trying to take it until she was sure this wasn't some trick. She had a feeling that if one man was claiming to be Shay the other might claim to be another familiar name, but that didn't mean it wasn't a trick. She deposited the Apple in Desmond's hands before turning back to the two men. 

"Alright, I got one of your names, but not the English gentleman." Natalie said calmly, looking directly at the second man with a cold and calculating gaze. 

The second man was tall like the first and even with his older English attire, Natalie could tell he was well built. His hair was brown and slicked back under the hat he wore with a pair of light brown eyes that stared at her with curiosity. He had a slight scar over his right brow and a smirk on his face that could make any red blooded woman swoon. However, Natalie was a professional Assassin and she did not swoon when there was a risk of being attacked. 

"I am Jacob Frye, my lady. And who, may I ask, are you?" The man replied still smirking. 

"My name is unimportant, I'm more concerned with how you two got here." Natalie replied, turning to Desmond as Boris jumped onto the table to inspect the two men. 

"Do you think the Apple had something to do with this?" She asked, staring at her friend. 

"It's a possibility, the same light happened just before those three appeared too. Except this time you touched the Apple which means these two must be-" 

Natalie cut Desmond off by holding up her hand and glancing at the two men. She was surprised to find Boris happily rolling over to let the two men rub his belly as he demanded their attention. It wasn't unusual for Boris to be affectionate with a stranger, but showing his belly after only just meeting a person was completely unheard of. She was the only one Boris trusted that openly. Jacob appeared to be enjoying petting the cat, while Shay was petting the feline with a raised eyebrow as if curious of its behavior. Shaking that thought away, she turned her focus on the two men, making them both glance at her as they felt her gaze. 

The Apple had pulled Desmond's three Soul Mates to his time and it seemed it had done the same for her after they'd come into physical contact with it. She wasn't sure whether to be relieved or worried by this. If it had just been Desmond's Soul Mates she had to worry about it would be fine, but one of hers was a confirmed Traitor to the Brotherhood. She didn't care anymore if anyone knew Shay was meant to be hers, she took pride in the names she carried now without the idiocy of her young teenage years to weigh her down over them, but she worried for Shay. Being a Templar among Assassins was never good it didn't matter what time period you are from. She had no doubt he was still a Templar, which meant she would have to do everything in her power to protect him from the other Assassins. 

The sound of someone knocking at her library door had everyone in the room snapping their heads around to look at the door. Shaking herself swiftly Natalie straightened up and contemplated opening the door, but decided against it. 

"What is it?!" She called instead. 

"Hey, Nat is Des in there with you? The boys out here are starting to get worried about him, especially since they didn't find him in his room." Dylan's voice came through the door, making Natalie almost give in to her want to open the door. 

"Yes he's in here with me. We're doing a little research into the Apple, I'll be out in a bit to start on dinner for everyone, for now inform those three that I am looking after Des and he is perfectly fine." Natalie called back, receiving a 'yeah' in response. 

Desmond sighed beside her, making her glance at her best friend. She could tell he wanted to go and assure his Soul Mates that he was fine himself, but they needed to figure this out before they just left the room. 

"I know you wanna go see them, Des, but just a little longer here okay? We have to figure this out. After all we literally just had the Apple drop an Assassin-turned-Templar into my Sanctuary." Natalie said, grabbing Desmond's attention. He nodded at her, but swiftly turned his attention to Shay as the man stood. 

"How do you know about the Assassin's? Are you an alley of theirs?" Shay asked accusingly. Jacob in the seat beside him had taken on a very suspicious gaze as he watched both Shay and her carefully. However, Natalie was too busy glaring at Shay's angry accusation to pay him much mind. 

"And if I was? What are you going to do, Mr. Cormac? You are in an unfamiliar place and out numbered. It would be very unwise to start things when you don't have any advantage." Natalie replied, coldly. 

She didn't care if he was her soul mate, she would not be treated so disrespectfully in her own home. Shay glared at her for a moment, before seeming to collect himself and sat back down. 

"Fine, you have a point. Then, please pray tell, who are you? I believe the two of us deserve to know, since we are in such an 'unfamiliar' place as you put it." Shay said, directing to himself and Jacob as he spoke. Natalie thought for a moment before glancing at Desmond, who simply shrugged as if to say it was up to her. 

"Fine. My name is Natalie Azrael, I'm an Assassin and the head of the very Assassin Sanctuary you are currently sitting inside of." She replied, crossing her arms and watching as both of their faces were graced with surprised expressions. 

"You are Natalie Azrael?" Shay asked, receiving only a nod. It wasn't a surprise for them to know her name, they probably carried hers on them as well in fact it was rare for someone to have a Soul Mate who didn't share their own name. 

"Well I must say, you are far prettier then I could ever have imagined you'd be." Jacob said suddenly, making Natalie blush in embarrassment and surprise. 

Natalie quickly recovered shaking herself and cocking her hip as she set her hand on her hip. She gave the Brit an unamused look which didn't deter his growing grin. 

"Focus Casanova, we have more important things to do then listen to your failed attempts at flirting with me." Natalie said smugly, smirking at Jacob's surprised expression. 

"And what could possibly be more important then discussing your beauty, my dear?" Jacob asked, recovering quickly. 

"Well for starters informing you that you are currently in the year 2012 and secondly figuring out how to convince the rest of the Assassins who frequent my Sanctuary that they shouldn't kill Shay on sight." Natalie replied, quickly turning her mind inwards towards her own thoughts to figure out a solution. 

"Nat, I hate to point out the obvious, but as you said this is your Sanctuary. A place where one can go to be safe, I'm technically a former runaway and most Assassins don't like me for it yet I came here knowing I'd be safe because you are giving me sanctuary." Desmond pointed out, grabbing her attention, "This is your home and you run it. If you choose to house and protect Shay then that is a decision no one can argue against." 

Natalie stared at him for a moment before literally face palming. He was right. This was her place and if she could throw out the Mentor of the Assassin Brotherhood then god dammit she could tell any others off who tried to harm Shay in anyway. 

"What would I do without you, Des?" She asked rubbing her now reddening forehead with her hand. 

"Well you survived nine years, I think it's safe to say you would do okay, but you sure do a lot better with me here." Desmond said teasingly. Natalie chuckled and turned to the two men at the table, who had once more had their attention grabbed by her cat. 

"Alright gentleman, stick close to me or Des here at all times. Especially you, Shay. Once the others find out who you are they will not hesitate to give you hell even with my protection." Natalie said loudly, making them glance up at her. 

"I am a trained Assassin my dear, I believe I will be fine." Jacob said with a smirk. 

"You aren't the one I'm worried about. They will accept you without question because you're an Assassin. Shay not so much. According to what little information I have on him in my library, he betrayed the Brotherhood and turned on them to join the Templars before beginning to try and wipe out all Assassins." Natalie explained glancing at Shay to see his eyes burning with anger. 

"I turned on them because Achilles sent me to get a precursor artifact that once removed started an earthquake that destroyed an entire city and all the lives in it!" Shay defended himself standing up angrily. 

"I have no doubt you left for a reason that indeed sounds justified, however, the story passed down through the Brotherhood doesn't detail why you left simply that you are a traitor and that is what most will see you as." Natalie replied calmly. 

"So that's it then, I follow you around like you're my warden. I don't think so sweetheart." Shay growled.

Natalie just stared at him with a calm expression. She wasn't trying to be his warden, just his metaphorical shield. If she wanted to be a warden she'd strip him of his weapons. 

"If I was going to treat you like a prisoner, I wouldn't let you keep your weapons let alone allow you to walk around my Sanctuary freely. I am a proud Assassin, but there are people who will always come before the Brotherhood or my Creed and my Soul Mates are two of those people." Natalie said quietly, keeping her gaze locked on Shay's angry ones. Shay seemed to calm slightly, but she could still see anger blazing in his dark eyes. 

"Look, Natalie and I have been best friends since we were kids. She's willing to go up against the Mentor of the Brotherhood for me, so I can promise you there isn't anything or anyone in this world she wouldn't go against for you." Desmond said, grabbing Shay's attention. 

Shay seemed to consider that for a moment before nodding and sitting back down. He gave Natalie an apologetic smile and quickly glanced away to pet Boris, who had moved to sit directly in front of Shay to get the Irish man's attention. Natalie let out a relieved sigh and straightened. 

"Alright then, since we have that figured out. What do you say we get out of the library, I have to get started on dinner." Natalie suggested, moving to the table and scooping up her cat while Desmond followed after her. 

She unlocked the door and stepped out of the way so Desmond could go off to find his three boys, while Natalie turned back to her own pair of men. 

"Are you two coming?" She asked. They stared at her for a moment before looking at each other and standing up. 

"Where are you leading us, my lady?" Jacob inquired as they approached her. 

"To the kitchen, where else would I make dinner." She said matter of factly, quickly leaving the room. She stopped by her room for a brief moment to deposit her feline inside before swiftly shutting and making sure it was locked so he couldn't get out again. She then led both men down her hall and back to Desmond's hall and into the kitchen there. 

Natalie was thankful to find that no one was there at the moment, which would give her some more time to think of what to say about explaining the two with her. She directed for both to sit at the table, while she quickly moved around the kitchen grabbing food and spices she might need for dinner. She had originally planned to make an Arab dish of some sort, but she didn't have the time to prepare one now at least not one to her liking, so instead she focused on a simple dinner of beer battered fish and some French fries. She swiftly made up the mixture for breading the fish she had and pulled out the fryer to start heating it up. 

She let out a breath as she washed off her hands and turned around to the table while she dried them. She eyed the table critically, knowing it didn't have the room for the two extra bodies who would be joining for dinner. She'd have to length the table, thankfully it was one of those with the pull out middle so it wouldn't be super difficult, getting even more chairs on the other hand that would take a couple of chairs from the library. 

"So what is the plan now, A stor?" Shay asked, pulling Natalie's attention to him. 

"What do you mean?" She replied, giving him a curious look, not catching what he had called her. 

"Well obviously we were brought to the future, what is your plan for us being here? Or are you planning to return us to our own time?" Shay inquired calmly, receiving a punch from Jacob for asking about sending them back. 

Natalie thought for a moment. She didn't want to send them back, not if there was a way to keep them, but she also wouldn't make them stay if that wasn't what they wanted. 

"Honestly, I don't know at the moment. My original plan was to find out why Des' boys were sent to our time and to find a way for them to stay since I can tell they don't want to leave him anymore then he wants them to go. But for you two..." Natalie paused, looking between the two men at the table who watched her patiently. She wanted them to stay more then anything, but she also knew that if it wasn't what they wanted she'd sacrifice her own happiness for theirs without even a thought. 

"For you two, I want you to stay, I really do. But don't feel obligated to stay if it's not what you want. I've survived twelve years knowing I might never get to meet you two, I can live the rest of my life knowing you two are happy." She said honestly, turning back to the fryer to drop the fish in it. 

She jumped as a pair of arms wrapped around her from behind. She hadn't heard the person move let alone get up from the chair they'd been in, which was a scary thought, Natalie's senses were hyper sensitive compared to most, because she lived in the catacombs under her bar. She was privy to any and all noises made around her even when she had ear plugs in her ears while working in the bar. The fact one of the men in this room had just snuck up on her threw her off and scared her beyond comprehension. 

"I have been waiting my whole life to find you, and you really think I would just leave you?" Shay's thickly accented voice sent shivers down her spine as his breath fanned across her ear. 

She didn't know how to respond to his words, so instead she brought her arms up and laid them over top of Shay's with a slight sigh. She leaned back into him, shutting her eyes as she enjoyed his arms around her. She was pulled from the peaceful moment as the beeper on the fryer went off. She reluctantly pulled herself from Shay's arms and moved to drop the fries in first. Just because they were eating fish with the fries didn't mean she had to make everything taste like fish. She set the timer for them and turned back to face Shay with a slight smile. "That's a matter for later. For now, I have to finish up dinner and focus on convincing the boys not to kill you once I explain who you are." Natalie said calmly, receiving a slight chuckle from the Irishman. 

Natalie waved him back to the seat at the table and began shuffling around the kitchen pulling out plates, silverware and cups for the table. As she juggled everything with an expertise from years of catering the bar as well as making food for large groups of assassins, she was a little surprised when a bunch of the objects were suddenly taken from her arms. "Please allow us to help, my dear. We aren't completely useless in setting a table." Jacob's voice filled her ears as she turned to find him and Shay had moved to help her. She wanted to argue that she could handle it, but decided to just let it go and nodded as they began setting things up at the table. 

 

By the time everything was finished and set up at the table, Natalie could hear all the boys coming down the hall from the training room. Before any of them could step foot into the room however, Natalie stepped out and gave them all a pointed glare. The only one who seemed to have not even been heading for the door had been Desmond who had continued on past the kitchen to his bedroom door. "You all better wash up before she shows you why you she's allowed to run this place by herself!" Desmond called back to the others, making them all quickly scramble off to do as the glare suggested. 

Natalie re-entered the kitchen and was greeted by Shay and Jacob chuckling at her actions. "Don't laugh you two may have helped but you have to wash your hands too." She ordered pointing to the kitchen sink with a stern gaze. Neither man argued they simply laughed as they moved to do as told. She nodded in approval as they came back and sat down and then nervously waited for the others. She wasn't too nervous about Desmond's boys, their opinion didn't really matter to her since she didn't really know them, but Duncan and Dylan were a different matter entirely. Desmond may have been her best friend since they were kids, but Duncan and Dylan were her team, her friends and her family in every sense. It would devastate her if they didn't accept both her soul mates, just as it would if Desmond hadn't. Thankfully her best friend never judged her and she never worried about him not accepting as seen from earlier with his lack of care towards the topic. 

Desmond was the first back from cleaning up and he wordlessly moved to take the empty seat beside Shay, leaving the one between Jacob and Shay open for her. Des gave her a comforting smile as she gave him a thankful gaze for his obvious act of helping cover Shay's open side from the others. Though it calmed her, his smile didn't send her worries away completely and they only grew tenfold once again when the others slowly started filing in. Desmond's boys gave a brief glance to the two new comers, but clearly believed they belonged there without question since Natalie wasn't making a fuss. Duncan however, sent them a suspicious stare and stood behind his seat while Dylan straight up glared at them.  
"Natalie, who are these two?" Duncan asked curiously glancing at the blonde who hadn't taken her seat yet. 

"Boys I'd like you to meet Jacob Frye and Shay Cormac, time travelers and my soul mates." Natalie said calmly waiting for the onslaught she knew was coming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what did you guys think. I know she doesn't have one soul mate, but thanks to a reader from my fanfiction.net site, I got the idea of making it Shay, but it was originally supposed to be Jacob because I liked the idea of his sassy ass playing off of her own sass. So I decided on both because I am indecisive and well ideas began to form. Now the main focus will still be Des and the boys, but I figured I could also do a sort of side plot with Natalie and her own boys that crosses with the main plot when we follow Des' p.o.v also i will be doing more Natalie p.o.v in the future with maybe a few p.o.vs with the other boys depending on how my mind goes. Anyway let me know what you guys think and I will try and get the next chapter out a little sooner. Also let me know if you guys want a little side story about how Natalie found Boris if you want to read about that cuz there is no way I will find a way to input that into the story and make it flow properly XD


	5. Christmas Special

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to get this up yesterday, but it didn't work out that way so here you go guys a Christmas special Chapter that gives a little insight of Desmond's past on the farm. At least how this AU past is anyway I know it was probably different in the actual games but whatever my story, my plot :P enjoy guys, let me know what you thought about it and I hope all your Holidays are Great!

    Desmond watched with a smile on his face as Natalie was moving around her bar humming Christmas tunes to herself while putting up the festive decorations. It wasn't common for Assassins to really celebrate any of the typical holidays of any of the different religions, but Natalie always had a love for Christmas and she made sure to have everyone nearest to her heart celebrate it with her. For once, Des could understand her love for the holiday.

    To Natalie it wasn't about the gifts and lights, it was about the people she surrounded herself with. She was thankful for their presence and loved to bring joy into their hearts by having a gathering of celebration. Seeing the smiles that crossed Shay and Jacob's faces while they helped her around the bar and even the amused faces of his own Soul Mates while his brothers explained the holiday to them brought a genuine smile to Desmond's face. All this festive cheer and bright lights had Desmond's mind drifting to the last Christmas he'd spent with his brothers and Natalie. Even back then, when they'd been sixteen, Natalie had shown an absolutely obsessive love for the holiday and it had his mind drifting back to that time, for once allowing himself to remember the rare happy moments he'd had while trapped on the Farm.

 

 

**Nine Years Ago...**

 

 

    Desmond panted as he was once again knocked down by one of the older Novices. Training was almost done for the day and then he'd be heading back home with his brothers and Natalie for the day. He was just about to get up and get back into a fighting stance when one of the Trainers called for them to go and clean up. Desmond sighed as his training partner sneered down at him and stalked away, it was such a pain to deal with his fellow Novices, just because he was the youngest son of the Brotherhood's leader he got a lot of crap from them. Most believed that he got special treatment by all the Trainers and higher ups, but it was exactly the opposite. He was treated as if he wasn't anything all because he didn't meet their expectations as William Miles son.

    Desmond sighed again and went to push up from the ground when a hand was held out to him. Glancing up, he was meet by a pair of stormy gray eyes and a brilliant smile that made the sun appear like nothing more then a small flame in the dark.

"Come on Des, we gotta go find your brothers." The girl said making him smile at the sound of her melodic voice.

"Thanks Nat." He said, taking her hand and allowing her to pull him to his feet.

"Don't mention it Des, beside you can pay me back by helping me put up Christmas lights when you come to my house tonight." Natalie said with a smirk as he groaned in response.

    He couldn't understand Natalie's obsession with Christmas. It was just a stupid holiday to make people go out and buy overly expensive products all of which they as Novices weren't allowed to own without permission from Des' father. However, if it meant she kept smiling like she was he supposed he could keep his grumbling to a minimum this year, but only to keep her smiling.

"Alright then let's go, I got find my knuckle head brothers." Desmond stated leading the way. "Who you calling a knuckle head?" A voice asked, making him glance over his shoulder. He was quickly gripped in a head lock while he flailed and struggled uselessly. "Duncan let go you ass!" Desmond demanded making his brother and best friend laugh at him. Duncan released him and Des straightened to glare at his older brother.

    The Miles boys looked a lot like each other, except for the few differences in their hair styles and coloring, most assumed them triplets at first glance until they realized the age difference between them. Dylan was about four when Desmond was born and Duncan was only about two. Each boy had a two year difference between the next, which left Duncan and Dylan at seventeen and nineteen respectively right now. That meant Des had one more year before both his brothers would be gone on constant missions. Although he always had Natalie's house to run to, Des couldn't bring himself to always run there when he was dealing with the rest of the Brotherhood's asshole members. Besides his brothers were his safe zone, they always had been, even against their father.

"What were you doing laying in wait for us?" Desmond huffed, as he straightened his shirt.

"Is a big brother no longer allowed to pick his little brother up from training?" Duncan countered slinging his arm around Des' shoulders as they started walking with Natalie leading the way.

    Desmond rolled his eyes at his older brother, but smiled anyway at the question while Natalie began rambling on about the decorations she wanted to put up as well as bragging about the awesome gifts she'd gotten for them and Dylan. Her rambling reminded Desmond that he still needed to get a gift for her, though he would probably have to borrow money from one of his brothers. His father didn't trust him with any funds of any kind, apparently he was too "rebellious" in his father's opinion not that he cared about his father's opinion anymore.

    As he pulled himself into focus, he realized Natalie was waving goodbye as she split off from them to go to her own home. He waved back and turned to Duncan who was doing the same.

"You do realize we still have to get her presents right?" Desmond asked flatly watching in amusement as his brother flinched.

"How do you know I haven't gotten her one yet?" Duncan shot back defensively.

"Because you and I always wait until we can take Desmond with us." A third voice replied, making both boys turn and grin at the taller boy approaching them.

"There you are Dylan!" Desmond greeted happily, receiving an affectionate ruffling of his hair from his eldest brother once he reached them.

"Sorry for being late, my training got pushed a little longer thanks to William." Dylan explained with a wary sigh.

    None of the brothers had ever referred to their father by anything other then William. The man was the furthest thing from a dad and not even close enough to call father, he was just William head of the Brotherhood and he probably always would be to the Miles brothers. In fact Desmond never referred to the man as his father outside of his mind, refusing to even vocally claim the man as blood, even the mere mention of him often made the youngest brother tense in anger.

"It's alright, brother. Why don't we head off now since we're all here?" Duncan suggested, seeming to easily sense his baby brother's growing anger at Dylan's mention of William. Dylan nodded apparently sensing Desmond's agitation as well. Desmond forced himself to relax and give both his brothers a reassuring smile before they headed off towards the city.

 

    Shopping was easy for the elder brothers with Desmond around. Though they knew Natalie, they didn't know her nearly as well as Desmond did, and yet the youngest brother was the only one who hadn't found her a gift yet.

"Come on Des, you know Nat like the back of her hand how is it you haven't found a gift yet?" Duncan asked in disbelief as they walked down the street from the clothing store they'd just left.

"I don't know, everything I've seen just doesn't feel like the right gift to get her that's all." Desmond said with a shrug. He knew he only had the rest of the day to get her gift, what with tomorrow morning being Christmas and all.

"Well you better figure it out soon, little brother, because if you don't get her a gift you'll look like an ass." Duncan replied, handing a few twenty dollar bills to his baby brother, "Me and Dylan are gonna head home and wrap Nat's gifts, meet us at her place."

    Desmond nodded as his brothers split at the corner of the street. Des watched them vanish before turning and walking down the next street of shops. He stared into windows, trying to find anything that he felt would be a good gift. This wasn't the first year he'd waited till the last minute to get Natalie her gift. She was the only one he took extra care to find the perfect gift for, after all she knew things about him that not even his brothers did. She was his confidant and only true friend outside of his older siblings. He felt he owed her every year to at least find something she would love, not just something that fit her or something she needed. No, his gifts for her were always unique and fit to Natalie's personality. Things she loved, whether it be knives or unique jewelry that was specific to the wearer, his gifts to the one he called best friend were always special and things no one else would ever think to get her.

    However, this year he was finding it difficult to find something that he hadn't gotten in previous years. Desmond sighed as he strolled through the streets before something in a store window he passed made him pause. He faced the window and stared at the object for a moment before grinning. It was perfect and he knew Natalie would love them. Hurrying into the shop before it closed, he went to the cashier and discussed with him for a few moments about the items in the window and had them put in a box and wrapped for him so that he could head straight for Natalie's. Thanking the man, he headed out of the store and down the streets, back towards the farm with a slight smile.

    When he reached Natalie's house, he could see the girls father outside putting lights up for the daughter he cherished so much. Now, William may have never been much of a father to Desmond and his brothers, but Ameer Azrael had more then earned the title of Dad in their eyes. The man loved Natalie with all his heart and was proud of every thing she did even going so far as to celebrate a holiday he had never personally cared for. The man had also took it upon himself to act like a fatherly figure to Desmond and his brothers, treating them as if they were his own flesh and blood.

    Desmond waved to Ameer as he stepped into the house with Natalie's present under his arm. He was immediately greeted by a petite fiery red haired woman.

"Desmond, sweetie, there you are. I was starting to get worried with it getting so late." The woman greeted with a bright smile that was so much like her daughters.

"Sorry, Mrs. Ciara." Desmond said with a smile as she wrapped him in a hug.

"It's alright sweetie, just glad you made it. Natalie and your brothers are in the living room dressing the tree." Ciara stated, pulling back and lightly pushing him in that direction.

    Like Ameer, Ciara Azrael had taken it upon herself to be the mother figure in the Miles' boys lives and they all adored her as much as her daughter. She was a kind woman who was meant to be a mother. Between her kind smiles and yet firm and protective nature, it was no surprise she had taken the boys under her wing and most days Desmond was grateful for her, but sometimes he wondered how she got dragged into this occultist group that was the Brotherhood, after all it was Ameer's family that had been born into it like Desmond's. Yet, the kind woman had joined them and eventually married Ameer and had Natalie, if anything Des was grateful for that for without them and his brothers he'd have gone mad and left long ago.

    Pushing those thoughts out of his head, he walked into the living room, to find Natalie sitting on Dylan's shoulders as she was carefully trying to place a golden star at the top of the tree. Meanwhile Duncan was placing random glass orbs of gold, red and green all over the tree. He laughed at the sight, making his brothers turn to look at him which in turn made Natalie grip Dylan's hair painfully to keep her balance.

"Ouch, that hurts Nat!" Dylan exclaimed trying to swat her hand away without releasing her legs that dangled over his shoulders.

"I'm sorry, but maybe if you didn't move without warning I wouldn't have done it!" Natalie shot back, glaring down at him as she released her hold. Luckily the girl had managed to get the star on the tree before his brother had turned and Desmond moved to help get Natalie off his eldest brother's shoulders, dropping her gift by the tree as he went.

    Duncan, noticing the wrapped box smiled as Desmond wrapped his arms around Natalie's waist so Dylan could let her legs slip off his shoulders.

"Finally found a gift Des?" Duncan asked, receiving a no duh look from his baby brother.

"No, I went and bought her an empty box and had it wrapped. Of course, I found a gift." Desmond replied sarcastically, receiving a slap to the back of his head from behind.

"Watch your tone young man and be nice to your brother." Ciara said as she walked past him with a tray of drinks in her free hand.

"Yes ma'am." Desmond replied sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

"So you boys are staying here tonight, right?" Ciara asked as she set her trey on the coffee table near the couch.

"Yes ma'am." Dylan replied, smiling at the red-head.

"Excellent, then I will make a big breakfast in the morning." Ciara beamed.

    All three boys grinned at the prospect of a home cooked breakfast. They didn't get it often since their own parents were never at the house and didn't believe in cooking for them when they were. They only ever got home cooked food when they would stay at Natalie's and they tried not to invade the Azrael families space too much. It wouldn't do for them to be cast from the house for pushing their presence on them too often.

"We appreciate you inviting us every year ma'am." Duncan said, slinging his arm around Desmond's shoulders.

"Nonsense. You boys are always welcome here. You are practically family." Ciara states walking back towards the kitchen, "Now finish up in here and all of you go get washed up I'll be bringing out dinner in a minute for you all to eat."

    All four teens grinned and quickly removed any boxes and left over ornaments from the room before rushing to wash up for dinner. As Desmond followed behind his brothers and best friends, he couldn't help but smile. It was moments like this that made him realize why he stayed on the Farm. Being with his brothers, seeing Natalie smile and having these family like moments in the Azrael home, all of these things are what made him stay here without losing his mind. He couldn't count how many times he'd just wanted to leave it all behind so he didn't have to deal with the crap from the other members or even from his own parents, but every time he'd thought he was at his breaking point, he'd see his brothers or Natalie's faces light up with smiles when they were with him and he could never go through with it.

    After they had washed up all four headed back to the living room where Ciara was setting down four plates on the coffee table.

"Go ahead and dig in kids, if you want seconds let me know." Ciara said with a smile as she headed towards the dinning room. Their table wasn't big enough for the three additional people, but none of the teens minded sitting in the living room eating while they chatted away. After a couple plates of food and a lot of chatting, Ciara ushered them off to bed, Natalie to her own room and the boys to the guest room.

    Desmond heard Dylan sigh as he kicked off his shoes, when he turned he found his brother laying in the center of the bed with his arms spread out taking up most of the space. He looked to his other brother who was shaking his head at the eldest display. Chuckling slightly, Desmond moved over to the queen sized bed and crawled on before flopping across his brother's chest. Dylan let out a huff of air at the sudden wait and one arm came down across Desmond back as the youngest smirked at the reaction. A moment later Duncan took the empty space next to Duncan's still outstretched arm and set a hand on Desmond's head.

    The brothers were used to sleeping in such a way since a young age, in fact it was only when their father was home that they even slept in separate rooms. So when they were at the Azrael's sleeping on the bed in a literal pile wasn't unheard of. Most of who saw them likes this in the Brotherhood frowned upon it and even spread incestuous rumors about them. None were true, though the lack of denial nor confirmation from any of the brothers didn't help their case.

    Desmond was pulled from his thoughts as Duncan ruffled his hair. Smiling at his brother, Des let his thoughts and worries slip away as he let sleep take him.

 

 

    Desmond was jolted awake as a sudden weight was dropped on his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. His eyes snapped open to meet the bright eyed and bushy tailed Natalie smiling down on him. Under his head he felt one of his brothers, who he assumed was Dylan, shift under him at the sudden jolt of his baby brother.

"Natalie, what the hell?!" Desmond demanded groggily as he glared up at her a bit.

"Get up, mama's making breakfast and then after that we're doing presents!" Natalie said excitedly jumping on Desmond's stomach a bit. Another puff of air left his lungs at her action and his brother once more stirred beneath his head, grumbling at the disturbance, while the feeling of another stirring on the other side of the bed let Desmond know that Duncan had finally been disturbed as well. The blonde on his stomach, finally got off of him as the youngest brother attempted to sit up. Still bouncing with excitement, Natalie watched as all three brothers sat up on the bed, all three sets of brown eyes turning to stare at her in slight annoyance and grogginess.

    Groaning, Desmond fell back to rest his head back on Dylan's stomach who glanced down at him with a look that said to handle the little blonde girl. However, Desmond was about as skilled in handling her as his brothers were, which was to say absolutely unable to. Natalie did what she wanted and as much as he loved her attitude most days, being woken up before breakfast was even ready was one of the days he didn't. Dylan's hand carded through his hair as he too laid back down, but no sooner had the brothers tried relaxing Natalie launched herself on Desmond's stomach again knocking the wind out of him again.  
"Either you all get up or I get the ice water!" Natalie hissed threateningly. All three brothers groaned before finally getting out of the bed.

    Desmond decided to steal the shower first, grabbing a set of clothes that the brothers left here on a previous stay and heading to the bathroom. He locked the door behind him and pulled his shirt off before pausing as he glanced in the mirror. He stared at the three names on his chest for a moment, his hand unconsciously coming up to run his fingers over them, before shaking his head and hurrying to get in the shower. He was curious about the three names he carried, but he knew there was a good chance he may never meet them. He'd probably be stuck here on the Farm his entire life unless his father ever deemed him good enough to put with a unit, which would never happen. Sighing, he pushed those thoughts from his mind. Showering and dressing quickly, he headed down stairs and was greeted by the wonderful smell of bacon and pancakes being cooked.

    He grinned at the smell and shuffled into the living room where his brothers and Natalie were circled around the coffee table, each with a plate in front of them. Not a moment after he entered Ciara came in with his own plate and handed it to him with a bright smile. He smiled back and sat down between Duncan and Natalie to eat, listening to Natalie prattle away about the day and what not. The moment the plates were gone and both of Natalie's parents settled on the couch, Natalie bounced to the tree and began grabbing presents. She bounced over to Dylan first handing him a bag and then put a box in Duncan's lap. She then set a couple of presents in her parents laps with a grin, she then scurried to the tree and grabbed her own and the last one for Desmond. His was a small rectangular present wrapped in green and red striped wrapping paper with a blue bow on top.

    Desmond waited until his brother's opened their gifts; Duncan getting a knife cleaning kit for his over abundance of knives he called a collection, and Dylan received a gun cleaning set for that pair of guns he enjoyed carrying so much.  
"Go on Des, open yours!" Natalie said excitedly as she watched him. Shaking his head, he tore off the wrapping and stared down at the beautiful pocket knife that was in a clear case. It could almost be considered a dagger with it size and yet it was just small enough to not quite reach that category.  
"Thanks not, it's awesome." Desmond said with a grin. He hadn't been allowed to have his own weapon yet, thanks to William, but leave it to his best friend to tell his father to suck it in the best way possible. Natalie grinned at him and watched her parents open their presents before turning to her own. She had already opened the one from Duncan and Dylan; a set of training daggers and a new set of training clothes; and was finally on Desmond's present.

    He leaned back and watched as she tore off the wrapping and pulled off the top of the box before pausing as she stared at the gift. Des could barely keep the smirk off his face at her response, he'd managed to actually out do himself from last year. He watched as she carefully pulled the black hoodie out of the box and stared at it. It was a reversible hoodie that could be either black or white, but it wasn't the reversible part that made Desmond get it, it was the Falcon design on the hood that made the hoodie appear as if the person was a bird that made him get it. Falcons were Natalie's favorite bird and she was excitedly waiting the day when the Novices got to their first Leap of Faith because she said she would love the feel of flying through the air.

    The sudden squeal and cry of excitement dragged Desmond back to Natalie and he nearly fell over as he was tackled by the little blonde girl.  
"Oh, Des I love it!" She exclaimed.

"Did you see the other half?" He asked smugly, making her release him as she dived back to the box. Her bell like laugh filled his ears as she pulled out a simple plush Falcon that had a Santa hat stitched onto its head.  
"I love him too, Des! Thank you!" Natalie said grinning as she hugged both the plush and the hoodie to her chest. Desmond grinned at her before glancing around at everyone. He didn't understand this holiday in the least even after Natalie had tried a dozen times to explain it to him, but if he could continue to have moments like this where he got to watch his brothers and best friend smile like all was right in the world then it didn't matter if he ever did. Because moments like this were all that mattered to him in a life where he had no control over anything in his life.

 

 

**Present Day**

 

  
Desmond smiled at the memory, though a frown soon followed. He'd found out only a month after that, that both his brothers were being placed with a Unit across the world and wouldn't be returning to the Farm for a long time if at all. They'd left a day after that news and by his sixteenth birthday Des just couldn't take his father's over baring personality anymore. He felt like he didn't belong with the Brotherhood. Natalie was the only reason he'd stayed so long and when he'd finally snapped and gone to tell her, she'd shoved a large pile of money into his hands with a sad smile and told him to go where the wind took him.

    Now, sitting here in this bar watching that same blonde prance around while wearing that hoodie he'd bought her all that time ago, while she was laughing with the loves of her life was a beautiful thing to him. And seeing his brothers after believing he'd never see them again was enough to make him feel like all was right in the world again.

"What are you thinking about _Habibi_?" A voice asked in his ear as arms wound around his waist making him jump slightly. He hadn't seen Altair move from where he'd been with his brothers.  
"Just remembering the last time we were all together for the holidays." Desmond replied, relaxing into one of his lovers arms with a content sigh.  
"I do not understand this holiday. It seems to be nothing more then a reason to get meaningless and useless gifts and put up fancy lights." Altair said, a slight hint of curiosity.

    Desmond chuckled at his words. That had been exactly what he'd used to think of the holiday, but now he knew what the holiday could mean to a person.  
"It's not about the gifts or lights or even about the holiday itself. It's about getting the chance to surround yourself with people you love and care about and show them how much you appreciate them." Des explained softly, "This isn't about the holiday, it's about the people you get to see."

    Altair stayed silent behind him for a moment, before tightening his arms around Desmond and setting his chin on his left shoulder.  
"I think I can see what you mean." Altair muttered, making Desmond glance at him. The Syrian was staring at him with a slight smile on his face, making it impossible for Des not to smile back at the older man, before glancing back around the bar his smile growing as he watched all of the most important people in his life talk and laugh with each other. And for a moment Des wasn't an Assassin, he wasn't in the middle of an ancient war, he was just a man standing watching his family being happy. For just a moment Desmond Miles let all of the weight on his shoulders lift and allowed himself to be happy too, while he leaned back against one of the Soul Mates he never thought he'd find.  


	6. Chapter 5

    Desmond glanced between his brothers and his best friend worriedly as silence began to grow. The atmosphere was growing so tense that he felt Ezio begin to tense up beside him. He was pretty sure there wouldn't be a fight, after all Duncan would never attack Natalie outside of training, but that didn't stop his soul mates from tensing their muscles in preparations for one. In hopes of at least calming the Italian, Desmond reached over and set his hand on Ezio's knee making the man tense further for a moment before relaxing. Relieved to at least have calmed one of the many highly dangerous people in the room, Desmond turned his attention back to Natalie.

    The little blonde was staring at his brothers with a calm, he was sure she didn't feel deep down. She let the silence stretch for a moment longer before she sighed in annoyance.

"If you two have something to say then damn well say it already! Dinner is getting cold." Natalie stated flatly.

"What do you want us to say Natalie?!" Dylan demanded angrily, shocking Desmond a bit. He'd never seen his older brother loose his temper.

"How about speaking your damn minds! I ain't Bill, if you got shit to say get it out there so we can hash it out now!" Natalie spat back, her tone just as angry.

"Fine, how about you explain how the hell they are here for starters?" Duncan demanded crossing his arms across his chest.

"I was in the library with Desmond looking into the workings of the Apple and why his boys might have been pulled here. I touched it and the next thing I know those two are on the floor." Natalie explained, her tone turning flat like she was explaining a simple topic.

"Alright then am I to assume that this Shay Cormac is the same one listed in our history as a traitor?" Dylan demanded his anger rising.

    Desmond saw Natalie's entire body tense up at his words before she forcefully relaxed herself and stared at his brothers.

"And if he is?" She asked calmly.

"Then how the hell could you let him walk around freely!?" Dylan shouted slamming a fist on the table as he glared at the blonde.

"The same way I can let four Assassin's I've never met before into my sanctuary, I trust them. Shay may be a Templar from the past, but that doesn't mean I should mistrust him."

"That's exactly why you should! Have you gone completely stupid just because you carry his name!?"

    Desmond shot his hand out to grab Shay's wrist as he noticed it twitch to activate the hidden blade he knew was there. The Irishman shot an angry glare at him and he slowly shook his head. Natalie needed to handle this, if Shay interfered it would only give Dylan more reason to believe she was making a mistake by putting her trust in him. Shay glared a moment longer before giving in and relaxing a bit. Jacob on the other hand looked like he was ready to leap across the table and attack the eldest Miles brother.

"No Dylan, I'm not stupid. Don't tell me that if your Soul mate was a Templar you wouldn't love them regardless?" Natalie inquired her eyes boring into Dylan like a fire.

    Dylan snapped his mouth shut at the question and glared at Natalie for a moment. Eventually his gaze traveled to Shay, who glared back as if daring the other man to say something stupid. Thankfully his brother gave in and sighed in frustration.

"I can't say that I would Nat, however, I haven't had the pleasure of finding my Soul Mate yet which means I probably shouldn't sour your memory of that. However, I don't trust him. He turned to the Templars, Nat, and it's gonna take a lot more then just him being your Soul Mate to earn my trust." Dylan stated firmly, turning his gaze back to the blonde.

"I never asked you to trust him, I'm only asking you to trust my judgment." Natalie stated, receiving a nod from Dylan.

    Desmond watched Duncan glance between the two with a worried glance before glancing at Shay as well then to Natalie.

"We'll trust your judgment Natalie, but we are just worried what could happen if you are wrong." Duncan said.

"And I understand that, but that's something for me to worry about. If Shay were to betray me, which I know he won't, then I will deal with the backlash from the order myself." Natalie stated confidently. Desmond's brother's glanced at each other before both sighing in resignation and nodding at Natalie.

    After that all three of them sat down and the tense atmosphere seemed to dissipate, though it didn't vanish. This left all of them completely silent while they ate, making Desmond and Ezio squirm in their seats slightly. Ezio was definitely the more talkative one out of Desmond's three soul mates and well Desmond wasn't used to the silence from Natalie or his brothers. Eventually everyone was finished and sat back in silence until Natalie cleared her throat.

"Alright boys, we've had a fun couple of days of relaxation, but now we need to focus!" Natalie said firmly, her tone making all three Miles' sit up a bit straighter. Even Desmond recognized that tone. That was the tone of an upper Assassin about to give orders to her unit.

"I know it's been forever since Desmond's been here, but we can't push off the encroaching apocalyptic warnings his unit received over a week ago." Natalie said, standing up so she could look over all the men at the table, "We have a lot of work to do and unfortunately we need help from the past."

    Natalie's words made Desmond tense. His best friend wouldn't really suggest he use the Animus again would she? No, Natalie would never do that she must have another plan. Right?

"Unfortunately this means the use of the Animus." Natalie's words made Desmond's heart sink and he stared at her in terror, "But don't you fret your pretty head Dessy, I'd never suggest you go back in."

    Desmond instantly relaxed at her words before he straightened again to listen carefully to her next words.

"However, I think I have an idea on how to fix it so it won't destroy a person's mind. Duncan, I want you calling Becca tonight and have her and Shaun get their asses down here tomorrow with the Animus and all their research from the last three months. Dylan I want you, distracting Bill so he won't know where those two are going tomorrow and keep that Lucy chic busy too!"

"Why isn't Lucy coming?" Desmond asked. It wasn't like Natalie to cut someone from their assigned unit.

"I don't trust the bitch, she's not allowed anywhere near my Sanctuary!" Natalie said sternly, making Desmond tense, "It may just be a gut feeling when I hear about her, but I don't trust the bitch and I won't let anyone I don't trust anywhere near the other entrances to my Sanctuary. Speaking of which, Duncan tomorrow while Dylan is distracting Bill and Lucy, I want you to lead Becca and Shaun to one of the Northern entrances! As for the rest of you, Desmond I want you and Shay helping me in the Library, we still have a lot more to look into on the Apple and the First Civ. Jacob, I want you in the training room with those three, training of course!"

    All men nodded their heads, until Altair decided to straighten a bit, getting Natalie's attention.

"Desmond needs to train as well. The Bleeding Affect obviously only does so much for his skills and he needs to train them in order to advance." Altair stated, making Natalie nodded.

"Don't you fret, when I take Shay to do some training during the day tomorrow, I'll send him your way. I have every intention to make sure Desmond keeps up his training, but I refuse to be anywhere near the Apple without him. That thing has corrupted even the best of the Order in the past and I will not risk that happening to me." Natalie replied, making Altair nod. Desmond could see a slight hint of what seemed to be respect in the Syrian's eyes as he gazed at the blonde and it made Desmond smile slightly.

"Good now that we have that all figured out, time to clean up! Miles front and center!" Natalie commanded moving to the sink.

"Yes ma'am!" All three brothers replied together, smirking as they stood.

"Same set up as last night, Dylan and Desmond drying, Duncan putting away! Shay, Jacob!" Natalie called back to her two men, who immediately stood to face her.

"I want you two bringing the dishes from the table to the counter beside me! You other three, take any left over food and put them in these!" Natalie ordered before taking some Tupperware from a cupboard and setting them on the table near the last three men. All five time travelers nodded and set to work while Natalie and the Miles boys got set up to start clean up.

 

    All working together it took less than an hour to clean everything up and put everything away. After they were finished, Duncan and Dylan went off to, Desmond assumed, their own hall of the Sanctuary. He watched as Natalie led both the new arrivals to her own hall, leaving Desmond with the final three of their little group.

"Desmond, would you like to join us for a little bit of training before we rest?" Connor asked, pulling the youngests attention to him. Desmond nervously scratched the back of his head at the offer. He could fight, but not nearly as much as he wished he could. While he knew he needed the training, he was afraid to disappoint the three Master Assassins.

"Do not worry _tesoro,_ we simply wish to gage where you are so we can help you advance." Ezio said calmly, catching on to Desmond's nervousness.

"We understand that you have not had the training to the extent of your brothers or Natalie, which is why we want to see where you are in order to help you catch up as quickly as possible without using that Animus." Altair explained, practically spitting the word Animus.

    Desmond hesitated for a moment before nodding and following after the three older men. They went into the training room giving Desmond an actual chance to take a look at it. There was a large rock wall that took up one whole wall of the nearly three story high training room. There was a small shooting area in one corner with some archery as well beside it, and then in the middle there was a large mat for combat training. Natalie had made sure to give her training rooms everything needed to do all types of training in one room.

"Alright, we'll start with the wall to see how far up you can climb before you can't pull your own weight and then see where your combat skills are at." Altair stated, turning instantly into the Grandmaster that he was.

    Desmond nodded in response and let Connor lead him over to the rock wall. He waved him off when the Native tried to offer him help with the harness. He used to put these things on all the time back at the farm and though it had been awhile he still remembered how they work and had no trouble hooking in and getting ready to scale the wall. Now this wall was a lot more intimidating then the wall they'd had at the farm, but he refused to let that stop him. He just had to remember all the times he'd been in Ezio or Altair's memories and how they climbed. Before he knew it, he was scaling the wall effortlessly, but he could tell that his movements weren't his own not entirely. He knew it was the Bleeding Effect taking over and allowing him to slip in to the familiar yet foreign movements of Altair as he scaled. Des however, didn't have the stamina nor the built up muscle mass to climb as long and high as Altair would be able to and had barely made it half way up the wall before he slipped and Connor caught the line to help ease him back down.

    Desmond gently landed on the ground, shaking his arms to try and keep the muscles from tensing up too much from the exertion.

"I see that the Bleeding Effect is still effecting you, but less harmful it appears." Altair stated as Desmond gave a shrug. He knew there was a possibility of his body automatically drifting into the movements of his ancestors and it made sense to feel more in tune with Altair's climbing methods since they had almost the exact same length for arm reach. Ezio was slightly taller than Des and the Syrian and his reach was slightly further than theirs as well, didn't make sense for the bleeding effect to have him use the Italians methods over the Syrian's.  
"Now that we know your climbing abilities, we should move to your combat skills. We'll start with hand to hand then move to weapons." Ezio stated, pulling his hoodie off as he walked towards the training mat.

    The former bartender followed the Italian to the mat, pulling his own hoodie off as he went. He got into position across from Ezio and waited patiently for the larger man to attack him first. He had learned patience from Altair thankfully, so he was easily able to wait out Ezio and easily avoided the man when he struck at him. The training continued, Ezio unable to land a single hit on the younger man, but that had more to do with how well Desmond knew Ezio's movements. He'd followed Ezio's life since he was a teen. He knew every move he'd ever learned from anyone and any moves he'd ever made by himself, it was impossible to actually have a proper fight with Ezio since he could dodge all his moves and then use the moves he'd learned from Altair to drop him without a second glance. It didn't help that despite Desmond's clear capability to handle himself against the Italian, that Ezio wasn't putting any effort to try and push him or even take it seriously.

    Eventually Altair told Ezio to switch with him and Desmond was actually gifted with a training session that he had to put some real effort and thought into. While Altair had no qualms laying a hit on Desmond or leaving a bruise, the American still knew the Syrian's moves pretty well and could avoid most hits while being able to strike back properly. It didn't take long for Altair to figure out that Desmond was able to read him just about as well as Ezio and he quickly had Connor switch with him. After that switch, Des spent an hour getting his ass handed to him. He'd never been through Connor's memories and therefore had no idea how to read his body movements like the other two. This made it extremely difficult for his body to figure out what moves to use. While he didn't like relying on the Bleeding Effect, his body did so without his permission and it seemed neither the methods of Altair nor Ezio could stand up to the Native properly. At least not with his lack of proper skills.

    Altair and Ezio's methods of fighting were natural to them making it easy for them to move fluidly and without thought, while Desmond's bleeding effect made most of his attempted moves against Connor clumsy and awkward and far to slow for them to work properly. Finally Desmond groaned in exhaustion and pain as his legs were swept out from under him once more and he was dropped flat on his back by the quiet Native.  
"I believe that is enough for today." Altair said from the side lines. Desmond saw Connor nod before he held his hand out to Des. He took the older man's offer and allowed Connor to help him to his feet. They both joined the other two on the side of the training mat while Altair and Ezio seemed to be discussing Des' current level of training.

"It appears you unconsciously slip into the methods that Ezio or myself use which, while somewhat effective against us, doesn't seem to allow you move freely and without fault." Altair stated.

"It's not unconscious. I can feel that it's unfamiliar and awkward, but my body moves on it's own." Desmond explained.

    He knew it was the bleeding effect, but he'd been told by Lucy that the bleeding effect was supposed to help him with his training and to never fight it. Not that he knew how to fight it anyway, but he'd had no reason at the time not to listen to her.

"Well then, we are going to have to find a way to break that. While the Bleeding Effect is helpful it does no good if your movements are not natural. The clumsiness and slow reactions could get you killed in a life or death situation." Ezio stated as Connor and Altair nodded in agreement.  
"As for your climbing, while it appears to be made up mostly of how I would move when I climb, it's clear that your body recognizes that your reach is slightly shorter and does unconsciously compensate for it. However, the movements are still a bit awkward so we will have to work there as well. Over all though you have a lot of potential Desmond, finding away to allow you to learn your own methods of movements and fighting without the bleeding effects help should help a lot with advancing your training." Altair said with a slight smile.

    Desmond couldn't help but swell with pride at the slight praise he'd received from the Syrian. He wasn't used to very much praise outside of his brother's or Natalie, so hearing it from Altair made it difficult not to feel just a little bit accomplished for the day.

"We should get some rest. Natalie has a busy schedule for all of us tomorrow and it would be best to get some proper sleep to be prepared for." Connor said after a moment. All of them nodded and headed off to shower quickly before getting into bed. Desmond wasn't surprised in the least when he came out of the bathroom in his sweatpants to find all three of his Soul Mates spread over the bed as if it was normal. For a moment he allowed himself to enjoy that moment. Allowed himself to imagine what it would be like to have them by his side for the rest of his life. He quickly pushed those thoughts away however, refusing to get his hopes up. He'd just enjoy the time he had instead of thinking of what might not be possible.

    With those thoughts pushed from his mind, he shoved Ezio aside slightly so he could claim his spot in the middle of the bed. The Italian laughed, but quickly whined as he found Altair claimed the space he'd originally planed to move towards. Des smirked at the slight argument that ensued, but quickly rolled on his side to shut his eyes and get some rest. He could feel Connor beside him while the other two behind him finally settled as well. Just as he was drifting off he felt two pairs of arms wrap around him and he couldn't help but completely relax in the embraces. Tomorrow was going to be busy, but maybe just maybe he and Natalie could find a way to keep their Soul Mates in their lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Sorry for the wait guys and I know it's pretty short, but I wanted to give you guys something and I felt like ending the chapter at that point was a good idea because stuff is about to get a bit busy for the next chapter. Becca and Shaun are coming back into the play and what's this Natalie doesn't trust Lucy. Not to mention with the arrival of two new time travelling Soul Mates it seems like the Catacombs are getting pretty cramped down there. Anyway hope you guys enjoyed this chapter let me know what you think might happen next and let me know if you think I need to work on anything I'm always open to creative criticism and welcome the assistance to help advance my writing. Anyway thanks guys :)


	7. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally some answers to some questions a lot of you have been asking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I am so so so so so sooooooooooooo sorry about the wait. I have been busy with work and life as most of you know, but I also am known as a procrastinator when it comes to stories. I have been writing a bit of Marvel Fanfiction cuz it's kind been my obsession as of late, but I suddenly had inspiration today and decided to write. I wanted this chapter to be longer and touch on a few other things but I decided to stop it where I did in order to give you an update before I ran out of fumes for this story, so here you go guys. Again sorry about the long wait and I adore all of you for your words of encouragement and love for this story it really helps me to keep my confidence when I write. Love ya all wouldn't be able to be the author I am without all you lovely readers <3

Desmond woke to the sound of someone knocking on his bedroom door. He groaned as his now sore body protested any movements, however, he rolled over anyway right into the warmth beside him. Arms wrapped around him when he pressed into the warmth and he sighed softly in content. A deep chuckle reached his ears and his source of warmth vibrated with the sound. Another sigh left Desmond's lips, but this time it was one of acceptance that he was most likely not going back to sleep.

 

"Come now _tesoro_ , you cannot sleep all day." The thick Italian accent reached his ears, but he still kept his eyes closed.

 

"Really? Watch me?" Desmond grumbled.

 

    He had never actually slept in before about a week ago when his soul mates first appeared. He had spent the first part of his life on the farm where his father and trainers ran the place more like a boot camp then even the military probably did, and the second part he spent looking over his shoulders running from the very life he ended running right back into. Now while he knew he needed to get up because he and Natalie needed to be looking into the Apple and the appearance of the five arrivals, that didn't mean he couldn't be a little stubborn about it. He could actually get away with it without being dragged out of bed in this situation. At least he hoped he wouldn't get dragged out of bed.

 

    He felt more then heard Ezio sigh beside him before the Italian began to pull away from him. Desmond cracked his eyes open for a second and watched as the taller man got off the bed. Unsure what Ezio was planning but wanting a few more minutes of sleep, Desmond burrowed into the blankets to stay warm. The Catacombs had heating but that didn't mean it didn't get cold over five stories under ground. He was just about to drift back to sleep when the blankets were suddenly torn right off him and he was assaulted by the cooler air of his room.

 

"Sorry _tesoro_ , but as the _bella_ said yesterday we have a busy day ahead of us and you are already supposed to be up and helping her with research into the Apple." Ezio said as Desmond opened one eye to glare at him. The bastard even had the balls to grin at him in that way that charmed himself out of any kind of trouble and the one that made it really hard for Des to remain irritated with the Italian.

 

    Sighing, Desmond rolled out of bed and stretched only to jump when a pair of arms wrapped around him. He looked up at Ezio, slightly irked that even if only by a few inches he was shorter than all of his Soulmates, and gave him a questioning look. The Italian smiled down at him for a moment before kissing his forehead and moving towards the door. 

 

" _Bella_ is in the library and asked for me to inform you to meet her there once you have eaten. If you need me or the other two, we will be in the training room." Ezio informed him, throwing a dazzling smile over his shoulder before leaving the room entirely. Desmond stared after him for a moment, before he felt his cheeks heat up from the realization he had just received a kiss from one of his soulmates. It wasn't an official kiss, he supposed, but still it was the first sign of affection he'd received from them, that wasn't them attaching themselves to him like leeches. Not that he minded them being his own personal leeches, it just shocked him is all.

 

    Shaking his head, Desmond quickly grabbed a change of clothes and went to shower. Once he was done and his hair mostly dry, he went to the kitchen to grab an apple from the fruit bowl Natalie had made sure to put in their kitchen and headed for her library. The door was slightly ajar when he arrived and he was greeted by a mewling feline winding its way between his feet, causing Desmond to nearly trip over the fluffy creature. He didn't understand how Natalie seemed to walk around with a death trap like this following her around.

 

"Boris, come here pretty kitty, Des isn't used to walking with you." Natalie called from where she was at the large table. Shay sat beside her going over the book that was placed in front of him, not even bothering to glance at Desmond. 

 

    The cat meowed at her in response before bounding away from Desmond to leap onto the table and rub it's head against her offered palm. He shook his head at his best friend and moved towards the table to look at the books she had open. All of which were in languages he couldn't read.

 

"Find anything of use yet?" Desmond asked, sitting across from Natalie as Boris moved to demanded attention from him.

 

"Not yet, but there is a lot more mentions of the Apples of Eden then we originally thought. Though they weren't always called the Apples or even Orbs. I have mentions of them being called Golden Spheres, Relics, Artifacts and even Weapons of Atlantis. The Apples of Eden must go back even further than just Altair getting ahold of one for them to have the title of Weapons of Atlantis. Considering we as a secret society are the only ones who actually have proof of Atlantis existing, the theory I've read up on even says the Weapons of Atlantis being removed might have been the cause for the civilizations disappearance from the world." Natalie replied thoughtfully her eyes never leaving the page she was reading.

 

"So you're saying the Apples were the reason Atlantis fell?" Desmond asked curiously. He remembered their lessons on the lost branch of the brotherhood in Atlantis, which all their members had vanished from except for a few who had been away to other branches at the time of its disappearance. Natalie's family was rumored to be descended from one such survivor.

 

"Not just the Apples, Desmond. There are other artifacts like the Apples that were created by the First Civilization. I've read mention of a robe or shroud of some sort that Evie and Jacob came into contact with, and there have been mentions of such things like staffs or even actual weapons like swords having properties similar to the Apples. Whether they were all meant to be like the Apples or became that way due to the First Civilizations downfall, I'm unsure, but it brings way more questions to mind then answers. However, I still haven't found any mention of the items dragging people through time or even mentions of people appearing when they come into contact with them." Natalie replied with a sigh, finally looking to Desmond.

 

"Well that's not all that surprising, I mean think about it Natalie, how many people throughout history have had the names of people from the past as their soulmates? And even if we could figure that number out how many of them came into contact with the Artifacts to even have the chance to meet them?" Desmond pointed out.

 

    Natalie thought over that for a moment before an expression of realization popped onto her face. Desmond was confused until, she turned to look at Shay then to Desmond's chest.

 

"Technically we're the only two I know of that have people from the past as our names, however we know of exactly five people who have the name of a person from their future that all came into contact with an Artifact of some sort. Altair, Ezio, Connor and Shay all came into contact with an Apple of Eden of some kind whether they were different ones or the same one that found its way into their hands through the passage of time, but all of them came into contact with one. And Jacob came into contact with an Artifact of a different kind but there is no mention of an Apple of Eden ever being in the presence of either Evie or Jacob, but they came into contact with a Robe of Eden. Yet not a single one of them had either of us appear to them when they touched it. Why is that? When either of us touched it, it instantly reacted and had them appear to us in a flash of light, yet after that we could clearly touch it without sending them back to where they came from. Was it because we knew what time our Soulmates came from where as ours knew nothing of how to find us?" Natalie inquired allowed thoughtfully.

 

"It would make sense. None of us had any clue either of you were from the future, let alone that we'd be long dead before we meet you." Shay said, turning to Natalie to watch her work this out thoughtfully.

 

"But that's not entirely true." Natalie said, looking to Desmond.

 

"What?" Desmond inquired.

 

"You only followed Altair up to the point of him beating Al Mualim, you didn't follow him after that. However, our family records have written accounts from Malik stating that before meeting Maria again Altair practically obsessed over the Apple after receiving it. Many of the records are written first hand by Malik himself and speak of him having talks with Altair about what he was doing with the Artifact. Altair's response was always that he was watching his Soulmate grow into an extraordinaire Assassin. It also states he couldn't wait to meet him in order to help him grow into the Assassin he was seeing in the Apple. So while you stopped following Altair after he got the Apple, it seems he started following you at least up until he left on that trip with Maria and his eldest son. I never made the connection to those writings until now because I didn't know about your names when I first started reading in our Archives." Natalie replied.

 

    Desmond stared at her in shock. Altair had made no mention of him having watched Desmond through the Apple and he had no sign of recognition on his face when he had first appeared. Desmond questioned this and Natalie got a thoughtful expression for a moment.

 

"Well, being pulled through time would disorient anyone I suppose, even someone like Altair. I would not be surprised if it also fuzzed his memory a bit. Maybe if we asked now he might remember such actions and lack of recognition from him, but this does give me some theories of why they are here." Natalie replied to his question.

 

"Care to share with the rest of the class?" Desmond inquired, petting Boris as the cat gnawed on the fingers of one of his hands.

 

"Well my first theory is that they were plucked from time and we have to return them to the exact moment we plucked them from to keep you and your brothers from ceasing to exist." Natalie said thoughtfully, making Desmond's heart sink for a moment, "Or my second theory, which is far more probable since it's been over a week and if you haven't disappeared yet you most likely won't when they stay, is that when each of them came into contact with an Artifact it basically scanned and created a copy of them through time to the same moment we touched the Apple. It would explain why Altair wouldn't recognize you, the version of him sent here would've been a version that hadn't watched you through the Apple yet."

 

"So you are saying we aren't real? That we're copies of our original selves?" Shay demanded, sounding angry.

 

"Well yes and no. You aren't just a copy anymore. While the Artifacts were doing their thing yes, but once they spat you out here, you became as real as you were in the past. In fact it would also explain why you all so easily accepted your sudden arrival into the future and the acceptance of the technology here. I think you could even remember everything up to the end of your life given time. The Artifacts basically gave you a sense of what you would be around while it kept your copies in them. Once we touched one of the Apples, like a wireless connection, each Artifact sent your copies to the exact Apple we were touching and it spat you out." Natalie explained, expanding on her theory as she looked back down at the book in front of her, "I mean we have the Apple that Ezio himself used, which was one that was used specifically to create illusions. Not to far fetched to think that the Apple could create such tangible illusions that it made you all real when it spat you out."

 

    Desmond felt his heart skip a beat at Natalie's insinuation. If she was right then that meant none of their soulmates actually had to leave either of them. If she was right then that meant he didn't have to send them back. That meant he could keep them by his side just as he'd wished when he'd first received his names.

 

"Are you saying what I think you're saying Nat?" Desmond asked shakily. He had to be sure before he could let himself hope.

 

"Well if I'm right, and we both know I usually am, this means they weren't plucked out of time and therefore there's no reason to send them back. If they weren't plucked from a specific time, then there's no reason for them not to stay." Natalie replied with a grin. Desmond was out of his seat the moment she finished speaking and rushing out the door. He had to see them right now. He needed to be sure they wouldn't disappear, he couldn't explain that sudden fear, but it was there. Up till now he'd been living with absolutely no hope of ever keeping them beside him, but now, if Natalie was right and he hadn't found a time when she wasn't, then this meant they could stay.

 

    Desmond flew down the hall back towards their hall and burst through the doors of the training room. Ezio and Altair, who were watching Connor and Jacob train on the mats, turned to look at him with a bit of surprise, their bodies tensed and ready for attack until they realized it was him. 

 

" _Ciao, Tesoro,_ did _bella_ already finish with you for now?" Ezio asked. Desmond didn't respond as he practically threw himself at Altair, who had been standing closest to him, as he approached. The Arab man caught Desmond against him and blinked at Ezio in surprise as the younger man buried his face in his chest. 

 

"You don't have to leave." Desmond practically sobbed into his chest, making all three of his Soulmates tense in panic. Connor waved Jacob off, who quickly moved to leave, and approached the other three. Ezio was running his fingers through Desmond's hair while Altair held him closer to himself. 

 

"Of course we aren't leaving, _habibi._ There is nothing in this world that could make us leave you." Altair muttered, smiling softly under his hood as Desmond pressed closer.

 

    Hearing those words, feeling the three around him as the all moved to comfort him the best they could. It was exactly what Desmond needed and he couldn't help but smile through his tears as he continued to cling to Altair. Knowing he didn't have to give them up, knowing that they wouldn't leave no matter what anyone or anything had to say, it eased all the remaining fears Desmond had and allowed him to sink into the embrace of his Soulmates with a smile on his face.


End file.
